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The eastern Libyans, an essay, by Oric Bat
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THE EASTERN LIBYANS
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THE
EASTERN LIBYANS
AN ESSAY
BY
ORIC BATES
B.A., F.R.G.S.
LATE OF THE NUBIAN ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY
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AN ARCHAEOLOGIST WHOSE UNSWERVING DEVOTION TO SCIENCE
IS BOTH AN EXAMPLE AND AN INSPIRATION
THIS ESSAY IS DEDICATED
WITH AFFECTION AND RESPECT
PREFACE
The present volume needs but few words by way of preface. The materials here
presented were first collected as part of the evidence relating to the history of Cyrenaica,
to the study of which I have devoted already a number of years, and to which I hope
to give more. As my Libyan notes grew in volume, and suggested the various questions
which are discussed in the following pages, it became clear that in mere mass alone
they would be a feature disproportionately large if introduced without abridgment into
the work I hope ultimately to publish. Such an abridgment would, unless the way
were first prepared by a series of articles in the journals, necessitate my making in
many parts of my treatment of Cyrenaic history a number of statements which, without
explanation, would appear dogmatic. That I have chosen to set forth the Libyan
material in the present form instead of in the journals, is due to a conviction that the
subject is of such importance as to warrant its treatment in book form ; to a desire to
have the evidence easily accessible to others ; and to a wish to provide, as far as I
may, a scientific basis for further study of the Libyans east of Africa Minor.
The importance of the Hamites in the eastern Mediterranean in Minoan times
will not be underrated to-day by any thoughtful student of that sphere and period.
Equally, to the Egyptologist, any systematic treatment of the people whose contribution
to the civilization of the Nile Valley has, for over a decade, been the source of so much
and such reckless controversy, should be welcome.
This essay both suffers and derives advantages from the fact that it has been
written in the field. The disadvantages of being often cut off from all libraries are
too obvious to be dwelt upon ; I am much to be blamed, however, if there do not
appear in the following pages some traces of the opportunities of which, by being in
the Levant, I have been able to avail myself. For I have had and used exceptional
opportunities to collate the monumental and textual evidence to be found in Egypt,
relating to the Libyans ; I have travelled in the Libyan Desert and Marmarica ; and,
in regard to the Nubian question, treated in the first Appendix, I was actively engaged
• vii b
viii THE EASTERN LIBYANS
in the Nubian Archaeological Survey during the year in which the great " C Group "
cemetery at Dakkah was excavated, and I personally examined every grave and its
contents. These opportunities, if I shall seem to the reader to have made good use of
them, I beg him to accept as an offset to such errors and omissions as would have
been avoided had I been working with the aid of a European library.
A word may here be said about the spelling of foreign names. As the historical
Egyptian names have been given English forms by Breasted, either in his History} or
in his Ancient Records} his spellings have here been for the most part preserved, with
this exception, that those which appear only in the Records, and which are there
reproduced with the aid of diacritical signs, have been simplified by the method
employed by Breasted himself in his History.
Arabic words have been transcribed according to the system tabulated below,
although in the case of some of the more familiar names the usual European forms have
been preferred to a literal transcription. Berber words have been transcribed by the
same signs as Arabic ones.
t A as in "father," or omitted in transcriptions.
c_> B as in " bolt."
c^) T as in " melt."
il> Tor TH as in " thus."
_ G as in " get," or G as in " agitate."
-_ H strong aspirate.
j^ H like ch in the Scotch " loch."
j Das in " dalliance."
j D sometimes like th in " misanthrope," sometimes as z in " zany."
j R as in " rat."
j Z as in " zeal."
j G (Berber) as in "edge " (French dj).
{j* S as in " single."
£> S or SH as in " shatter."
^ *
u° S like ce in "menace."
u^ D hard palatal d zs in " brigade."
is T hard palatal t as in " tower."
k Z as in " zoology."
p. a or ', somewhat like the pause in " co-operative."
1 J. H. Breasted, A History of Egypt, 2nd ed., New York, 191 1.
2 Idem, Ancient Records of Egypt, Chicago, 1906. Hereafter cited as BAR, with volume (Roman numeral) and
section numbers.
PREFACE ix
t t or GH, strong guttural resembling the g in sagen.
l_j F as in " fowl."
(J K like c in " caisson."
CJ K as in " keep."
^j G (Berber) slight nasal quality, somewhat as in " banged."
J L as in "long."
* M as in " mat."
e/Nas in " note."
» H as in " hurry."
j W or U as in " well " or " crude " respectively.
^ Y or I as in " yellow " or " machine " respectively.
The full titles of the modern works cited in the notes, and of the editions of the
ancient sources used, will be found in the bibliography at the end of the work. In
the notes, writers have been cited usually by brief titles.
In conclusion, among those whom I have to thank for helping me during the
course of this work, I wish especially to mention the following : —
Dr. G. A. Reisner, with whom I served on four expeditions in Syria, Nubia, and
Egypt, for continual help and criticism, especially in the parts relating to philological
questions and religion ; Dr. R. Basset, of Algiers, for several valuable miscellaneous
notes on religion, and Dr. J. Toutain, of Paris, for similar help ; Dr. A. Erman, for a
notice of the god Ash ; Dr. L. Borchardt, for most generously and hospitably extending
to me the privileges of the Imperial and Royal German Archaeological Institute in Cairo,
where I was free at all hours to use the excellent Egyptological library there collected ;
Dr. D. E. Derry, for an outline of his theory of the Egyptian race, and for the friendly
enthusiasm he manifested toward this work while we were together in the Khedivial
service, and later in the Egyptian Sudan ; Dr. G. Roeder, for continued sympathy
and advice, and for bibliographic material ; Mr. E. M. Dowson, Director-General
of H.H. Survey Department, and the officers of H.H. Coast Guards for the aid
given me in connection with an expedition made in the Libyan Desert in the autumn
of 1910, and especially, in this connection, Binbashi L. V. Royle, whose guest I had
the pleasure of being during part of that journey ; Dr. P. A. A. Boeser, of Leyden,
for photographs ; Mr. C. M. Firth, for allowing me to use, after I had left the
Government service in order to write this essay, unpublished material obtained by the
Nubian Archaeological Survey then under his charge ; Professor G. F- Moore, of
Harvard University, for his kindness in reading and criticizing the first draft of the
x EASTERN LIBYANS
chapter on Libyan religion ; Dr. G. H. Chase, of the same University, for generously
reading the entire work, and making a number of valuable suggestions and corrections ;
and finally, my father, Dr. Arlo Bates, for his untiring patience in correcting proofs.
To those whose names are not mentioned in the above list, but who have given me
their help in this work, I here wish to acknowledge my gratitude. As was necessarily
the case in dealing with a subject of this sort, I have incurred a number of obligations
which lack of space forbids me to specify.
ORIC BATES.
The Pyramids, GizAH, 1911.
Gebel Moyah, Sennar, 1912.
CONTENTS
PACE
Introduction .......... xix
CHAPTER I
Physiography of Eastern Libya . ^ .
V
CHAPTER II
Ethnology and Ethnogeography
39
CHAPTER III
Language and Writing ........ 73
CHAPTER IV
Economics . . . . . . . . . .91
CHAPTER V
Society and Government ........ 108
CHAPTER VI
Dress and Ornamentation . . . . . . . .118
CHAPTER VII
Material Culture and Art ........ 142
CHAPTER VIII
Religion . . • • • • • • • ■ .172
xi
xii THE EASTERN LIBYANS
CHAPTER IX
PAGE
History .......... 210
APPENDIX I
On the " C Group " People of Nubia ...... 245
APPENDIX II
On two Inscriptions from Gheytah ....... 253
APPENDIX III
Traditional Libyan Origins ...... . 255
APPENDIX IV
Biblical Notices ......... 258
APPENDIX V
The Antaeus-Crater of Euphronius ....... 260
BIBLIOGRAPHY ......... 263
PHILOLOGICAL INDEX . . ..... 277
GENERAL INDEX ......... 283
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
[Except in the few instances specified below, the illustrations have been drawn or redrawn by the author.]
MAPS
PAGE
I. Africa : distribution of the Hamitic stock. After G. Sergi ..... 44
II. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography ca. 1200 B.C. From Egyptian sources .... 50
III. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to Herodotus ...... 53
IV. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to Scylax. After C. Mflller, Tabulae in Geographkos
Minores, Par. I., Pis. iii. and v. ........ 54
V. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to Strabo ...... 56
VI. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to Diodorus Siculus .... 57
VII. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to Pliny ...... 59
VIII. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to Ptolemy, projection unrectified. After C. Mtiller,
Tabulae in Claudii Ptolemaei Geographiam xxxvi., Pis. xxiii. and xxv. ... 60
IX. The same, with projection rectified ........ 65
X. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to late Roman sources . . .67
XI. Eastern Libya : ethnogeography according to early Arabic sources .... 70
General Map of Eastern Libya, i : 4,000,000, compiled at the Offices of the Survey Department,
Cairo, Egypt, and at the Royal Geographical Society, London. [In back cover.)
PLATES
FACE PAGE
Three Libyans (Tiles from Medinet Habu). XXth Dynasty. Cairo Museum ; photograph by Emile
Brugsch Pasha. First published by G. Daressy, Plaquettes . . . de Medinet Habou . Frontispiece
I. Libyan Types from the Egyptian Monuments. Fig. 1, Rebu, after W. M. F. Petrie, Racial
Photographs, No. 771 [a]. Fig. 2, Rebu, after ibid., No. 770. Fig. 3, Rebu, after ibid.,
No. 771 [b]. Fig. 4, Rebu (?), after ibid., No. 82 [a]. Fig. 5, Tehenu, after ibid., No.
85. Fig. 6, Rebu (?), after ibid., No. 82 [b]. Fig. 7, Meshwesh, after ibid., No. 154.
Fig. 8, Rebu (?), after ibid., No. 162. Fig. 9, Tehenu, after ibid., No. 84 . . .42
xm
xiv THE EASTERN LIBYANS
FACE PACE
II. Libyan Types from the Egyptian Monuments. Fig. i, Western Type (painting), after ibid., No.
772. Fig. 2, Rebu, Abu Simbel (back of head restored) ; after photograph. Fig. 3, Western
Type (painting), Petrie, op. cit., No. 799. Figs. 4, 5, Meshwesh (?), small bronze in Louvre,
details in silver. Fig. 6, Rebu, after LD, iii., PI. 253. Fig. 7, Meshwesh (?), after Petrie,
op. cit., No. 166. Fig. 8, Tehenu, after ibid., No. 71. Fig. 9, Meshwesh (?), after ibid.,
No. 164 (slightly restored) ......... 46
III. Libyan Princes from the Tomb of Seti I. After LD iii., PI. 136 . . . .120
IV. King Seti I. slaying Libyans. Karnak . . . . . . . .126
V. Libyan Tributaries. Bent Hasan. This representation, which I have often cited as Libyan, is
generally regarded as portraying Semitic Bedawin. But I think that the subjects are
southern Temehu Libyans because the paintings represent blonds with blue eyes, in the
shorter Libyan robe, and wearing ostrich plumes. Fig. 1 after P. E. Newberry, Beni Hasan,
vol. i., PI. xiv. Fig. 2 after ibid., loc. cit. Fig. 3 after ibid., PI. xvii. (east wall of tomb
14, middle register) .......... 130
VI. Figs. 1 and 2, Small granite head in Cairo Museum. Photograph by Emile Brugsch Pasha.
Head said to have come from Thebes, and probably represents a Rebu. Fig. 3, Relief from
the Tomb of Harmheb. Leyden Museum ; kindness of P. A. A. Boeser . . .134
VII. Relief from the Mortuary Temple of King Sa-hu-re. Kindness of L. Borchardt . . . 136
VIII. Fayum Implements. After H. W. Seton-Karr, Fayoom Flint Implements, as follows : PI. iii., 3,
6, 9 ; PI. ii., 9, 11, 6, 1, 17, 3, 2, 5 ; PL vii., 5 ; PL iv., I, 6, 7 ; PL vi., 1, 2 ; PL i., 1, 2,
3 ; PL ii., 18, 20, 25 ; PL viii., 3, 1 ; PL xi., 4 ; PL xiii., 5 ; PL viii., 9 ; PL vii., 4 ; PL
ix., 3. The foregoing are arrow-heads, the following are lance- or spear-heads : PL xlix.,
called a knife, but more probably a spear-head, though knives of this type were known in
predynastic Egypt ; PL xvi., 4 ; PL xvii., 3, 5, 7 ; PL xvi., 1 ; PL xlyii. ; PL lxii., 1 ; PL
xxxiv., 2 . . . . . . . . . . .146
IX. King Seti I. and his Libyan captives. Karnak. (Representation of heads at back of King's
chariot particularly excellent) ........ 214
X. Libyan Captives. Medinet Habu ........ 224
XI. Middle Nubian Crania. Bull. Nub., vi. Figs. 1, la, Skull from Grave 87 190. Figs. 2, 2a, from
Grave 101 : 104. Figs. 3, 3#, from Grave 101:219 . . . . . 246
FIGURES IN THE TEXT
1. (a) Egyptian representation of Egyptian eye. {b) Egyptian representation of Libyan eye. Beyt
el-Waly ........... 43
2. [a) Eye of a Kabyle : front, (b) Same : side, (c) Eye of modern Egyptian fellah : front, (d) Same:
side. From original sketches ........ 43
3. Tehenu : negroid type. After Petrie, op. cit., No. 72 . . . . . .43
4. Tehenu : negroid type. After ibid., No. 163 . . . . . . .43
10.
II.
12.
14.
15'
1 6,
I 7-
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
5, 6, 7. Petroglyphs at Teli-Sagha, Fezzan. After H. Barth, Rehen und Entdeckungen, vol. i. .
8. Libyan Hunting-Dog. Intef Stela, Cairo Museum .....
9. Petroglyphs showing Pack-Oxen. Western Libya, (a) From 'Ayn Memnunah. After E.-F
Gautier, Sahara Algerien, p. 99, Fig. 18, 7. (b) and (c) From Barebbi, after ibid. p. 95.
Fig. 15, 2 .
Libyan. Temple of Rameses II. at Wady Sebua, Nubia. Photograph through the kindness of
C. M. Firth
Detail after N. de G. Davies, El AmJirna, i. PI. xv. .
Detail, slightly restored, after ibid, iii., PI. xxxi., and Photog. PI. xxxix.
Late relief in Constantinople Museum. After C. Tissot, Ghgraphie Comparh, vol. i., Fig. 54
Late relief. After H. Barth, op. cit., vol. i. p. 117 .
Late relief. After H. Barth, op. cit, vol. i. p. 117 .
(a) Detail from PL iii. (£) Sardinian potsherd, after A. Baux, Potterie des Nuraghes, Figs. 1 and 2
Relief of Libyan from the Mortuary Temple of King Ne-user-re. After L. Borchardt, Ne-user-re, Fig
31 (for position, ibid., PI. x. ; this sculpture is now in the Berlin Museum, Nos. 17915—16)
18. Primitive Egyptian Sheaths. (a) After J. E. Quibell, Hierakonpolis, Part I., PL viii., Fig. 3
(b) After ibid., PL x., Fig. 2.
19. Libyan Sheath and Belt. After L. Borchardt, Ne-user-re, Fig. 29 (general position of this fragment
shown in ibid., PL xi.)
20. Libyan Sheath, Belt, and Cross-bands. After LD iii., PL 129 (XlXth Dynasty) .
21. Libyan Sheath. Detail from original sketch, Temple of Rameses II. at Abydus
22. Libyan Sheath and Belt. After LD iii., PL 140 ......
23. Libyan Sheath and Belt. After Photograph 296 K. und K. Arch. Institut, Cairo : Abu Simbel
24. Captive Meshwesh. After LD iii., PL 209 (XXth Dynasty ; Medinet Habu)
25. Detail of Belt and Loop. After LD iii., PL 140 ......
26. Detail of Sheath and Statue. After G. Daressy, Statues de Divinitis in Cairo Cat., vol. ii., PL vi
(Cairo Museum, No. 38,068). Cf. vol. i. (text), p. 25. From Karnak. This unknown
god — "he who wears the double plume" — was probably of Libyan origin
27. Detail of Belts in Figs. 17 and 19. (Conjectural restoration) ....
28. Detail of Loops in Figs. 17 and 19. (Conjectural restoration) ....
29. [a) Shell Sector-bead: "C Group." After G. A. Reisner, Nub. Arch. Survey, vol. i. (Plates
PL lxx. : b. 13. {b) Conjectural stringing .....
30. Sandal. Detail from Frontispiece ........
31. Libyan. Wooden panel from Tomb of Thothmes IV. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
32. [a ) Hat of Arcesilaus. After representation on the Silphium-weighing vase. Detail from reproduc-
tion in E. Babelon, Cabinet des Antiques a la Biblioth. Nat., PL xii. (b) Modern Imushagh
Hat. Detail from original sketch at Tripoli ......
33. Relief at Ghadames. After H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, PL x., Fig. I .
34. Slunt Sculptures. Reproduced from G. Haimann, Cirenaica, Fig. 3 ....
35. Libyan Plumes. Tomb of Rameses II. at Thebes .......
XV
PAGE
94,95
97
103
119
120
120
120
121
121
121
123
123
123
124
124
124
124
125
125
125
126
126
126
127
127
128
128
129
130
xvi THE EASTERN LIBYANS
PAGE
36. Sketch showing Negro method of wearing plumes. Cf. LD iii., PI. 117 . ■ • * 3
37. Ear-rings, {a) Detail from Fig. 45 = Petrie, Diospolis Parva, PI. xxv. (Grave Y354). (b) Cf. this essay,
PI. I., 8 ; PI. II., 5, 9 ; and Figs. 4, 17. (c) Cf. ibid., PL II., 2. (d) Cf. ibid., PI. VI., 3 (the
two Libyans), (e) Cf. ibid., PI. I., 7. (/) Detail from ibid., Fig. 24. (^) After LD iii., PI.
209. [h) Cf. ibid., PL VI., 1. (i) After E.-F. Gautier, Sa/wra Algkrien, PL xv., Photog. 28 131
38. Ear-ring and Stud. Beyt el-Waly. Kindness of G. Roeder . I 3 I
39. Plate-beads, showing stringing. After G. A. Reisner, Nub. Arch. Survey, vol. i. (Plates), PI. lxx. b. . 131
40. Detail of Cross-bands from Fig. 17 (conjectural) ....••■ 1 3 2
41. Detail of Cross-bands from Beyt el-Waly, showing colour-scheme. Kindness of G. Roeder . 132
42. Detail after L. Borchardt, Ne-user-re, PL viii. B (Berlin Museum, No. 17,918) - ■ J 33
43. Kneeling Libyan, Beyt el-Waly. Kindness of G. Roeder . . . ■ • • J 3+
44. Hieroglyph. (Example in the " Osireion " shows one pendent, and in the place of the other a stave
for support) . . . . . . ■ • • • • J 35
45. Cranium. After W. M. F. Petrie, Diospolis Parva, PL xxv. (Grave Y 354) . • • J 35
46. Head of Fulah of Kayor, showing side-lock (photograph by Collignon). After J. Deniker, Races of
Man, p. 442, Fig. 139 ......... I3 6
47. Lock of Youth (Egyptian). Statue Rameses II., Karnak, after W. M. F. Petrie, History, iii., p. 40 137
48. Libyan Tattooing. After N. de G. Davies, El-Amarna, vi., PL iv. Right shoulder of original
damaged . . . . . . . . . • ■ I 37
49. Four Libyans. Thebes. After J. G. Wilkinson, Manners and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians,
vol. i. p. 246, cut No. 76 (group 4) . . . . . . • ■ x 3^
50. Tattooing. Details of " Neith-symbols." (a) From Frontispiece; (b) from PL III. (right-hand
figure) ; (c) from Fig. 49 ; (d) from Frontispiece ; (e) from PL III. (third figure from left) ;
(/) from PL III. (second figure from left) . . . . . . • : 39
51. Three Hieroglyphs ........... 14°
52. Elements of Libyan Tattooing from Frontispiece ; PL III. ; Figs. 48, 49 . . . 140
53. Libyan Vessels. After W. M. Miiller, Egypt. Researches, vol. ii. p. 124, Fig. 46 . . . 142
54. Libyan Sticks, (a, b) After N. de G. Davies, El-Amarna, ii., PL lx. (c) Detail from Fig. 64 . 145
55. Libyan Bows, {a, b) Details from PL IV. (c) After LD iii., PL 253 .... 145
56. Arrow-head from near Gerbah (Siwah), 2 : 3 nat. size. (Sent to me by Major L. V. Royle, 1912) . 145
57. Libyco-Berber Glyphs at Barrebi. After E.-F. Gautier, Sahara algkrien, p. 97, Fig. 17 ; scale 1:20 146
58. Libyco-Berber Relief. (From near Abisar in Kabylia ; now in Algiers Museum, No. 104.) After
V. Reboud, Recueil d' Inscriptions, PL xvi., Inscr. 135 ..... 146
59. Poignards. (a, b) After L. Borchardt, Ne-user-re, Fig. 64 (fragments in Berlin Museum, Nos.
16,110, 16,115). Possibly Puntite ? Cf. ibid, (text), p. 87. (c, d) After LD iii., PL 61
(Karnak, XVIIIth Dynasty), (e) After LD iii., PL 253 (repeated eight times) . . 147
60. Rock Glyph. After G.-B.-M. Flamand, Inscriptions de la Gara des Chorfa, Fig. 7 (p. 11) . . 148
61. Shield from Rock-glyph in Tibesti. After G. Nachtigal ap. G.-B.-M. Flamand, op. cit., Fig. 5 (p. 11) 148
62. Musical Instruments. Details from a N.E. representation. After J. G. Wilkinson, Manners and
Customs of the Ancient Egyptians, vol. i. p. 456, cut 224 . . . . 155
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
63. Temebu War-dance. After I. Rosellini ap. G. Maspero, Struggle of the Nations, p. 220
64. Architectural Moulding from Slunt. After photograph ap. A. Ghisleri, Tripolitania e Cirenaica, p. 51
65. Slunt Sculptures : fragments. Reproduced from G. Haimann, Cirenaica, (a) Fig. 4 and (b) Fig. 5
Cf. Fig. 34
66. Hawah Segal. Reproduced from G. Haimann, op. cit., Fig. 2
67. 67a. Reconstruction of Fortress of the Ghemines type. Scale 1:600. Sources as in text, Ch. VII
68. 680, 68b. Reconstruction of Fort at Ghemines. Scale 1 : 600. Sources as in text
69. 69a, 69^. Reconstruction of Fort at Henayah. Scale 1 : 600. Sources as in text
70. joa. Small Fort near Wady Malah, Gulf of Bombah. Scale 1:600. Plan and section by O. Bates
1909
71. Photograph, Wady Malah Fort, showing passage between the two enclosures
72. The same, showing masonry near ramp .....-•
73. Native Hut. After F. Gauckler in Compte Rendu de V Acad, des Inscrip., 1898, p. 828. (From a
Roman mosaic) ......•■•
74. Native Hut. After S. Gsell, Mush de Philipville, p. 32 and PI. ii. (From a Roman sarcophagus)
75. 75*7. Large Cistern in Mariut. Scale 1:500. O. Bates, 1910 ....
76,76a. Cistern. Seal Is., Gulf of Bombah. Scale 1:200. O. Bates, 1909 .
77, jja. Grain Store. Near Marsa Suzah. Scale 1:200. O. Bates, 1909
78 a, b, c, d. Plastic representation of Amon ; from Karnak. Reproduced from G. Daressy, Une NouvelL
Forme d , Amon, in Annates, vol. ix. (1908), PI. i. .
79. Relief (Roman period) at Karnak. After ibid., PI. i. .....
80. Amon from Bronze Mirror from Mit Rahinah. After G. Daressy, Une Trouvaille de Bronzes, etc.
in Annates, vol. iii. (1902), PI. ii. Fig. I .
81 a, b, c. Teknw. (a) After J. J. Tylor, Tomb of Paheri, PL viii., Register 7. (/■>) After idem., Tomb
of Rekmara, PI. xxi., bottom register, (c) After idem., Tomb of Renni, PI. xiii., Register 2
82. Rock-glyph of Ram, from Col de Zenaga. After E.-F. Gautier, op. cit., Fig. 14 (p. 93)
83. Rock-glyph of Ram (?). Same source. After ibid., Fig. 1 1 (p. 89)
84. Rock-glyph of Ram, from Bu'Alem. After S. Gsell, Monuments antiques de I'Algerie, vol. i. p. 46
F'g- *3
85. Punic Relief. After E. de Sainte-Marie, Mission, etc., p. 67
86. Terra Cotta Figurine of Baal Hammon. Barre Collection. After Perrot and Chipiez, Histoire de
I' Art, etc., vol. iii., Fig. 25. (Cf. ibid. vol. iii., Fig. 140, for another example.)
87. Terra Cotta Figurine of the Dives Ovium. After E. de Sainte-Marie, op. cit., p. 60 .
88. Rameses II. slaying a Libyan Chief. Beyt el-Waly. After a photograph, through the kindness of
G. Roeder ...••••■■•
89. Revamped Head (changed from Syrian to Libyan). Beyt el-Waly. After a tracing of the original
made by G. Roeder ..-•••••
90 a, b. (a) Typical Early " C Group " Grave and Superstructure (filling cleared) as found at Dakkah
(Pselchis). (b) Section through same, on N.W.-S.E. axis .
91. Section through regem near 'Ayn Sefrah. After E.-F. Gautier, op. cit., Fig. 1, 3 (p. 69)
XV11
PAGE
155
158
158
l62
164
164
165
l66
167
167
169
170
170
170
171
I92
193
194
194
I96
I96
I96
199
199
199
214
215
246
247
xviii THE EASTERN LIBYANS
PAGE
92. Plan of Grave-circle, Rokniah type. After Maclver and Wilkin, Libyan Notes, PI. xv. I . . 247
93 a, b, c. Seal Island regem. O. Bates, 1909 .....-•• 2 4°
94. Seal Island regem. O. Bates, 1909 .......•■ 248
95 a, b. Scenes from Smoothed Coarse Red Ware Jars from " C Group " Graves at Dakkah. Kindness
C. M. Firth .......... 249
96. Jar-sealing from Amadah, Nubia. After Maclver and Wooley, Areika, PI. ix. b (two examples were
found). Cf. the similar example in ibid., Buhen, Plates ; PI. 42, three lowest figures . 249
97. "C Group" Figurine from Dakkah. Kindness C. M. Firth ..... 250
98. Elements of "C Group" Tattooing, as seen on the Figurines from Nubian Arch. Survey cemetery, 101 250
99 a, b. Two Inscriptions from Gheytah (in the Egyptian Delta). After W. M. F. Petrie and F. G.
Duncan, Hyksos and Israelite Cities (double volume), PL lxviii. .... 253
100. Heads of Heracles and Antaeus from a crater by Euphronius. After E. Poittier, Vases antiques
du Louvre, ii. (Salles E-G), PI. 100 . . . . . ■ ■ • 260
INTRODUCTION
The name " Libya " has passed into our nomenclature from that of the Greeks and
Romans. 1 The former of these people derived it from an Egyptian, 2 a Semitic, 3 or the
original African source. The name was in classical times used to denote a region
to which various other names were, with varying propriety, applied, 4 and which was
more or less extended according to the writer's knowledge or geographical theories.
Among Greek writers it therefore happens that Libya may denote all Africa, 5 or
Africa west of Lower and Middle Egypt, 6 or Africa west of the Red Sea and of the
Isthmus of Suez, exclusive of Egypt. 7 This vagueness regarding even the true eastern
boundary of Libya — at best merely an academic question — persisted until Roman
times. At that period the current significance of the term was generally restricted to
Africa north of Aethiopia, west of Egypt, inclusive or exclusive of Africa Propria and
the Mauretanias. But as long as it was employed, the word was often used very
carelessly — much as we employ the word "India" in its stricter meaning, or to
include Baluchistan, Kashmir, Nepaul, Ceylon, and even Burmah.
Under these circumstances, the reader is quite justified in asking, What, then, is
" Eastern Libya " ? In reply, it may at once be said that on the maps no such name
is applied to any portion of Africa. Its significance is not geographical so much as
ethnical ; and even here it refers to a difference in culture rather than in race. The
region which is throughout this essay to be understood by this name is bounded on the
north by the Mediterranean, on the south by the deserts just north of the Anglo-
Egyptian Sudan, on the east by the Nile Valley, and on the west by a line running
1 'H Aif3vr] ; Libya. 2 From the ethnic J y af |> r '^ w -
3 The ethnic form exists as o-yh Lubim, in the O.T., as in 2 Chron. xii. 3 ; xvi. 8, etc. ; or as oun 1 ? Lehabtm, as in
Gen. x. 13.
4 Steph. Byz. in verb. Aif3vi], where Libya is called x°V a irokvavvfios, after Alexander Polyhistor.
5 Herodotus iv. 42.
6 Homer, Odyss. iv. 85, xiv. 295 ; Hesiod, Theog. 739. According to Scylax, Periplus, § 107, and Marcianus
Heracleensis, Periplus Maris Externi, i. § 4, Libya began at the Canopic mouth of the Nile.
7 Herodotus ii. 17, 18, iv. 167 sqq. ; cf. Strabo i. pp, 86, 174 ; Ptolemy, ii. 1 § 5.
xix
xx THE EASTERN LIBYANS
south-easterly from what was the Lake Tritonis of the ancients. The position of this
last point has given rise to some controversy, but may be taken as either represented
by the system of salt ponds and lakes south-west of the Gulf of Kabes, or by some one
of these, 1 though Herodotus seems to have fallen into the error of mistaking the whole
Syrtis Minor for the Lake. 2
While the reader will at once understand that the occupation of the Nile Valley
by the Egyptian race in the east delimited " Eastern Libya " upon that side by an
ethnical as well as by a geographical boundary, it may not be equally clear just why
Lake Tritonis has been chosen to mark the western confines of this area. As intimated
above, the point in question marked a division not between two different races, but
between two groups of the same race, who, on broad lines, were characterized by two
different states of civilization. From Egypt to Lake Tritonis the ancient populations
were mainly nomadic ; 3 to the west of the lake the people were sedentaries, who
differed from the nomads in their customs, 4 and who for the most part lived in
permanent dwellings, and tilled the ground. 5
The line between the two populations was, of course, not a hard and fast. one.
Large bodies of nomads were to be found on the Atlas slopes ; 6 and in Eastern Libya
permanent or semi-permanent communities existed, as for example at Augila 7 and
Ammonium. 8 That the well-watered plateaux and enfilades of the Atlas System, west
of Tritonis, should have been occupied by a people following a habit of life different
from that of those scattered over the barren steppes of Tripolitana and Fezzan, or living
in such fertile areas as were to be found in those regions, is not to be wondered at.
The richness of the soil, the difficulties of moving about in large bodies in a region
of high mountains and narrow denies, and the knowledge that to the south and west
of them lay less desirable lands, — all these factors contributed to inspire the western
branches of the Libyan race to remain firmly seated in their country. Periodic
droughts, a region for the most part open, and to be traversed, even though painfully,
throughout its habitable length and breadth, and the rapidity with which the water
or grazing in any one locality was exhausted, tended to keep the Eastern Libyans
in that state of nomadism in which they entered their country. The Lake Tritonis
was therefore a boundary not merely arbitrary, but with some real significance, and it is
1 H. Barth, Wanderungen, vol. i. p. 252 ; Tissot, De Tritonide Lacu, passim ; C. Perroud, De Sjrtids emporiis, p. 19 sq.
The last-named writer seems to have established finally {a) that the site of the old Tritonis Lacus is to-day marked by the
Shott el-Gerid and Shott el-Hameymet, and (b) that the Tpirtav Trorafj.o's of Ptolemy iv. 3 § 3, Scylax S no etc. is not
marked by the Wady Akarlt, but by the lesser Tarf el-Ma.
2 Herodotus iv. 179 et alibi. 3 Ibid. iv. 186. 4 jfc^ j v jg_
6 Ibid. iv. 191. 6 Cf. Strabo ii. p. 131.
7 Mela i. 8 ; Procopius, De aedificiis vi. 2. 8 Herodotus ii. 32, 42 et alibi.
INTRODUCTION xxi
with the indigenous North African peoples who anciently dwelt between it and Egypt
that this essay will deal, treating of their race, their history down to the time of the
invasions of the Moslemin in the seventh century a.d., their language, their religion, and
their customs.
Analogies offered by modern conditions will be employed not infrequently, since
desert environment has, despite hundreds of years, preserved among the modern indigenes
of Eastern Libya many of the customs and usages of their forefathers.
The meanings of a few words that are of common occurrence in this and other
works relating to North Africa, and on the maps, may here be fittingly introduced, with
a view to obviating later comment. For the same reason, a table of the main outlines
of Egyptian Chronology, which is that used in referring to the earlier historic periods in
Libya, follows the glossary.
Africa. — In the modern continental sense, and not in the Roman, unless specified. Africa Minor =
Moghreb, q.v., and not, as sometimes, all North Africa.
' Ayn. — Spring of sweet water.
Berber. — Strictly, a word having only a glossological meaning : the modern language of the Libyan
race, in all its dialects. Here, and in many other books, used in an ethnic sense to mean
" modern Libyan," e.g. " Berber superstitions " = the superstitions, not of all Berber-speak-
ing peoples, which would include some negroids, etc., but of those directly descended from
the ancient Libyans.
Bir. — Well, water-hole.
Birkah — A pond, or small lake.
Darb. — Route, road, trail.
Duffah. — Flat, desert, plateau of limestone.
Eastern Libya. — The region mentioned above, and in more detail in Chapter I.
Egypt. — The Nile Valley from the sea to Aswan (First Cataract).
Erg. — Desert of sand-dunes.
Garah. — Isolated bluff, or mesa of limestone.
Gebel. — A general term for all desert or mountainous tracts.
Hamadah. — Stony, burnt up, desert.
Hamitic. — Of, or pertaining to the Hamitic race. This race comprises the Berbers or Western
Hamites, and the Aethiopian, or Eastern, Hamites. See Libyan.
Haftiah. — Desert halting-place where some grazing is to be had, and, rarely, water.
Historic. — After the Illrd dynasty of Egypt.
Kafilah. — Camel-train, caravan.
Kerbah. — Water-skin (pi. kerabah).
Kasr. — Stronghold, fort. Applied by the modern Arabs to many ancient buildings regardless of
their original purpose.
Libya. — North Africa west of Egypt, and north of the region of tropical rains.
Libyan. — Of or belonging to the indigenous population of Libya as a whole ; generally used in
reference to the ancient population, and not synonymous with Hamitic, which has a wider
XXI 1
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
meaning, including as it does such people, pure or mixed, as the Begah, Masai, Danakil,
some Abyssinians, etc.
Marsa. — Port, harbour. E.g. in the Italian corruption Marsalla = *l)l l _ 5 « ir « Marsa- Allah =
" God's Haven."
Moghreb or el-Moghreb. — North-west Africa — the whole Atlas region.
Mongar. — Spur of limestone cliff ; isolated peak of limestone.
North Africa. — Mediterranean, Saharan, and Atlantic Africa west of Egypt. Libya in its broader
sense.
Nubia. — Nile Valley from Aswan (First Cataract) to Wady Haifa (Second Cataract).
Pre-historic. — Before the IVth Egyptian dynasty.
Pre-dynastic. — Before the 1st Egyptian dynasty.
Proto-Berber. — Ancient Libyan language.
Proto-dynastic. — The 1st, Ilnd, and Illrd Egyptian dynasties.
Rif. — Fertile strip of cultivation, e.g. along the Nile ; in a special sense, the African littoral along
the north slopes of the Maroccan Atlas.
Sahel. — Plain-district at the foot of mountains or plateaux.
Sebhah. — Salt-covered marsh, depression caked with salt.
Shott. — A wide, shallow pond of salt water.
Tell. — Table-land, heights, e.g. the Algerian Tell ; a hill.
Wady. — Ravine, stream-bed (generally dry), valley.
The outline of Egyptian Chronology which now follows is that adopted with certain
slight modifications by G. A. Reisner from the system of the Berlin School : —
Pre-dynastic period
Old Empire
[Dynasties I. and II.
Middle Empire
New Empire
Saite period *
Ptolemaic period .
Roman and Byzantine period
B.C. 4500 to 3300
„ 3300 „ 2400
„ 3300 „ 3000]
,, 2400 ,, 1600
,, 1600 „ 663
» 66 3 m 33 1
» 33i » 3°
„ 3O „ A.D. 65O
1 The latter part of this period, from about 500 to 331 B.C., may be conveniently styled the Late New Empire.
CHAPTER I
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 1
Man's relations to his physical environment are of such vital importance that it is
essential at the outset of this essay for the reader to be acquainted with the physio-
graphy and climatology of those regions over which the Eastern Libyans were anciently
distributed. This is the more necessary because, on the one hand, the characteristics
of Africa between Egypt and Tunisia are such as profoundly to influence the lives and
habits of those dwelling in that area, and because, upon the other, the existing general
descriptions of this region as a whole are unsatisfactory.
Eastern Libya may be defined as that area bounded on the north by the
Mediterranean Sea, on the east by the Nile Valley, and on the south by the twenty-
second parallel of north latitude. To the west, it is bordered by a line running S.
from the Shott el-Gerid on the eighth meridian (E. Greenwich) to lat. 28° N. ;
thence on S.E. to lat. 22° N. In the most general terms, the region thus denned
may be described as a central rectangle of desert, with a fertile coastal belt on the
north ; a still more fertile strip, the Nile Valley, on the east ; the fertile mountains
of Tibesti on the southwest, and a chain of small oases along the western border.
South of the northern fertile zone runs another chain of oases ; yet a third lies in the
eastern section, parallel to the Nile. Such, in its broadest outlines, is the region which
is discussed in the present chapter : 2 for convenience it will be treated under the
following eight headings : —
I. The Littoral Zone — the Syrtes ; Cyrenaica ; Marmarica.
II. The Libyan Desert — Northern and Eastern Oases ; Nile Valley ; Kufra.
III. The West — the Chad Route Oases ; Hamadah el-Homrah ; Hamadah Murzuk.
IV. Internal Geography — Roads ; Rates of Travel.
V. Geographic position with regard to outlying regions — the West ; South ; East ;
North.
VI. Climatology.
1 Throughout this and the following chapters the reader is referred for the general geography and physiography of
Eastern Libya to the large scale map in the cover-pocket.
2 Cf. P. Langhans, Wandkarte. An excellent physical map showing the whole area.
B
2 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
VII. Flora ; Fauna.
VIII. Man— Present Numbers ; Distribution ; Relations of Man to his Environment
in Eastern Libya.
I. The Littoral Zone
The East Libyan littoral is about noo miles in length, measured from long.
io° E. in the Gulf of Kabes to long. 29 30' E. in the el-Arabs Gulf, near Alexandria.
The general trend of the shore line, from its western extremity, is S.E. to the bottom
of the Syrtis Major, a distance of about 500 miles; thence N. by E. about 100
miles, following the western coast of Cyrenaica, thence to the el-Arabs Gulf, about
550 miles in a mean E.S.E. direction. The above courses define the main bends of
the coast : they are, as it were, the simplest terms short of a right line to which
the coastal traverse can be reduced. By examination of the littoral somewhat more in
detail, though again without regard for its minor irregularities, it will be seen to
proceed thus, from west to east : —
Gulf of Kabes to Cape Mizratah, about 275 miles S.E. by E.
Thence to Zerid (S.W. part of the Syrtis Major), about 50 miles S.
„ Marsa Braygah (S.E. part of the Syrtis Major), about 180 miles S.E. by E.
,, Benghazi (W. extremity of Cyrenaica), about 100 miles N. by E.
„ Ras et-Tin (E. extremity of Cyrenaica), about 175 miles E. by N.
,, Ras el-Mudawr (S.E. extremity of Cyrenaica), about 30 miles S.S.E.
,, Ras el-Milh (beginning of Gulf of Solium), about 90 miles E. by S.
„ Solium (S.W. point of Gulf of Solium), about 30 miles S.
,, Long. 29 30' in the el-Arabs Gulf, about 250 miles E. by S.
In all this extent of coast, the most northerly points touched are lat. 33 55'
N. (northern point Gerbah Island) in the west, and lat. 3 2° 57' N. (Ras el-Hillil in
Cyrenaica) in the east. The lowest latitude on the coast is 30 17' N. (Muhtar,
at the bottom of the Syrtis Major), and the whole coast lies therefore between the
thirtieth and the thirty-fourth parallels. 1
The physiography of the littoral zone may best be followed from west to east.
Beginning at the Shott el-Gerid, 2 a shallow salt lake interposed between the eastern
extremity of the Atlas system and the lower and smaller mountains of the Syrtica
Regio, the reader will, even from a glance at the map, note that the Shott has every
appearance of having at one time been connected with the Gulf of Kabes. Such, in
fact, seems once to have been the case, for although the level of the Shott is now
different from that of the sea, the connecting channel between the two is still marked
by the Wady Akarit. Immediately east of the Shott el-Gerid, the Gebel Dahar
recedes southward to meet the Gebel Nafusa in lat. 32 N. This latter range has
a general E. trend, running, as the Gebel Gharyan, into the fertile zone from N.W-
1 British Admiralty Chart No. 664-449, Mediterranean Sea, for the general position of the coast.
2 T.S.G.S. maps, No. 1539-7, Tripoli, No. 1539-14, Sella, and No. 1539-15, Aujila, for the Syrtic region. The
place-names are often incorrect, and other minor errors occur.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 3
corner of the great Hamadah el-Homrah in a direction roughly parallel with the
coast. From the point of contact between the Gebel Nafusa and the Hamadah,
the boundary of the fertile littoral district trends away S.E., following a direction
approximately parallel to the coast, at a never greatly varying distance of about
125 miles from the Mediterranean. The line is marked by the northern declivities of
the Hamadah, the edge of which, under the names of el-Mudar mta el-Hamadah,
Gebel es-Sodah, Gebel Sharkiah, and the Harug es-Sod, is fairly well denned as far
east as the Oasis of Wagilah (Augila), where the Hamadah itself begins to give place
to the sand dunes of the Libyan Desert. The shore line of the district just outlined
is, excepting that of Marmarica, the most desolate and forbidding in the whole
Mediterranean. After leaving Gerbah, the only inhabited island 1 on the East Libyan
coast, the voyager sees only a monotonous succession of sand dunes, with an occasional
cluster of palms at a seaside well. In the immediate neighbourhood of Tripoli town,
the monotony is varied by the rich gardens that there stand by the sea, but these once
passed, the coast again takes on a desolate character which it maintains throughout
the rest of the Syrtic region. In some places, as along the west shore of the Gulf
of Kebrit (Syrtis Major) in the vicinity of Melfah, the low dunes are backed by sebhas,
some of which are rendered dangerous to travellers by treacherous quicksands.
Occasionally, shallow boat-coves occur, as at Marsa Zaffran and el-Hammah, but
these interruptions are not sufficient to break the mournful monotony of the coast.
Between the sea and the Hamadah el-Homrah (to return to the western part of
this district) the interior country is diversified by numerous low hills and ridges,
presenting for the most part a barren and stony appearance, which is, however, often
relieved by the verdure of the wadys they contain. These latter are in some cases
perennially fertile, at least in spots, and throughout the lower parts of their courses
water may be had by excavation. The general trend of these wadys, and so of the
ranges that form them, is E. or N.E., those in the vicinity of the Syrtis Major
being less inclined from the meridian than those farther west. East of the Syrtis
Major, lacking the mass of the Hamadah as a watershed, the wadys are fewer and
drier ; the Wady Farag, which, as its name implies, is without water, and runs S.W.
and then W. to the coast near Marsa Braygah, is the only one of any considerable
size. A few of the western wadys unite several smaller branches at points not far north
of the edge of the Hamadah, and reach the coastal sands bearing a little water, which
is increased in winter by the rains. Unlike the great water-bearing wadys of Algeria
and Marocco, those of Tripolitana hardly ever carry water to the sea itself, except when
in full spate from the winter rains.
On leaving the Syrtica Regio, with its sandy coast, its hills, and the Hamadah
el-Homrah, one passes at once into Cyrenaica, 2 which constitutes, together with the
1 Mohammad Abu Ras Ahmed en-Nasir, Description de . . . Djerb/i, for this island.
2 Applying this term in its fullest extent.
4 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Gebel el-'Akabah which lies next it on the east, the central portion of the East Libyan
littoral. In shape, this district rudely resembles the segment of a circle thrust out into
the Mediterranean, the chord of this segment being about 170 miles in length, and
running E.N.E. from Bueb Bay in the Gulf of Kebrit, to Ras el-Mudawr in the
Gulf of Bombah. 1 The area thus defined consists, in its northern part, of a mountainous
limestone gebel, the N.W. end of the great Libyan Coastal Plateau which runs east
and west behind the shore line, nearly to the Egyptian Delta. In Cyrenaica, the
heights are separated from the sea by a very fertile sake/ or ribbon of coastal plain,
descending in steep terraces, which are broken by numerous short ravines and wadys, to
the sea.
The height of the plateau, which from the fertility of its valleys is called the
Gebel el-Ahdar ("Green Mountain"), is in its more elevated parts as much as 2200
feet above sea-level ; its mean elevation is about 2000 feet. The depth of the fertile
zone in Cyrenaica is at its greatest only about 70 miles, at which distance from the sea
the plateau, which declines toward the south, takes on the appearance of a barren grass
steppe. Still farther south, where the underground moisture from the north is
dissipated by the sand and the heat, the grasses disappear, the limestone ends, and the
dunes of the Libyan Desert, which have already been seen meeting the eastern extremity
of the Hamadah el-Homrah near Wagilah, again appear.
Taking up the topography of Cyrenaica in greater detail, one finds that the
western district, just north of Bueb Bay, and known as Barkah el-Homrah (" Barkah
the Red"), is a plain, roughly triangular, having its apex at the north where the
mountains of the limestone plateau approach the sea. Its name is due to the hue of the
soil, which is here a peculiar sandy loam, the colour of old tan-bark. 2 At Ras Teyones,
a little south of Benghazi, the mountains approach the coast to within about 1 2 miles,
and at about half this distance north of Benghazi, come almost to the sea, which they
may be said to meet at a point yet farther north, near Tolmeytah.
In proceeding easterly from Tolmeytah, the traveller crosses a succession of ridges
and ravines all the way to Ras et-Tin, where the coast turns sharply to the southwards,
and the high part of the plateau, dipping toward the S.W., recedes from the shore line.
Many of the ravines just mentioned contain a little water permanently — all of them do
so in the rains, some being at that time unfordable. South of Ras et-Tin, at a distance
of about 1 5 miles from that place, the Gulf of Bombah is entered. 3 This remarkable
break in the coast line occurs between the two masses of the Gebel el-Ahdar on the
west and the Gebel el-'Akabah on the east. It may be said to consist of two small
harbours, lying both on a N.W. by W.-S.E. by E. axis, facing each other, and separated
by a small gulf, and a slight projection in the coast line at Ras er-Ramil. The northern
1 T.S.G.S. maps . No. i539- T 5, Aujila, No. 1539-8, Ben-Ghazi. G. Hildebrand, Cyrenaika, Taff. iii., iv. British
Admiralty Charts, No. 1031-241, Benghazi to Derna, and No. 1029-244, Derna to Ras Bulau.
2 El-Idrisi, Clima iii. 3, mentions this earth.
3 British Admiralty Charts : No. 1030-245, Bombah, and No. 1029-244, Derna to Ras Bulau.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 5
harbour is but a cove, sheltered from the sea on the E. by a narrow point (" Tank
Point"), and ending in a salt marsh; the southern is a narrow inlet (" Enharit
Kurzala"), formed by Ras el-Mudawr and "Seal Island," and running south from the
gulf. Both, especially the latter, afford good anchorage for small craft, and are a
favourite resort of the Greek sponge-fishermen at the present day. Of the islands in
the gulf, Bombah or Burdah is an uninhabitable steep mass of granular limestone, while
" Seal Island," which is low and flat, is suitable, to some extent, for human occupation.
From four points in the stretch of coast which has just been surveyed, natural
passes give access from the sea to the interior. The most westerly of these is at
Benghazi, east of which one may pass through a break in the high, coastwise barrier
which (together with a number of semi-isolated peaks) terminates the Gebel el-Ahdar
on the N.W. From this pass, going in a N.E. direction, one travels through a series
of valleys to Merg, one of the more considerable towns of the interior, occupying the
site of the ancient Barca. If, on entering the gebel at the same place, the traveller
takes an E.N.E. route, he will come to the head of the greatest of the Cyrenaic wadys,
the Wady Dernah, by which he may descend to the town of that name on the sea.
The second important break in the gebel occurs at Tolmeytah, at the end of the coastwise
barrier mentioned above. Having entered the Gebel el-Ahdar by this pass, and
crossed a high N.-S. range behind the barrier, the traveller falls in upon the valley
of Merg, at a point somewhat to the north of that place. Between Benghazi and
Tolmeytah a minor pass leads from the coast at Tukrah to Merg, a fact mainly of note
since the former place, anciently Taucheira, was at one time the port of Barca,
which lay 27 miles from its harbour town. From Marsa Suzah, a port about half-way
between Tolmeytah and Dernah, another of these secondary passes — in this case short
and ill-defined — runs back to the modern Grennah. Marsa Suzah, anciently Sozusa
(later Apollonia), was the port of the latter place, which marks the site, and preserves
the name, of the old metropolis Cyrene. The third primary pass from the sea into the
Gebel el-Ahdar, and the most important of them, is the Wady Dernah mentioned above.
This valley, which in its lower course is perennially water-bearing, begins to assume
an important size at a point about 30 miles southeast of Grennah. It runs from
this point in an easterly direction for 25 miles, then turns N.N.E. toward the sea,
and finally debouches at Dernah, coming to an end just behind the town, between two
conspicuous shoulders of the plateau, which are clearly visible from the sea at a distance
of some miles. The fourth wady leading into the interior is not one of great im-
portance, since it passes through a desert country, and is only a little below the level
of the plateau through which it runs. The wady in question is that called on the maps,
though with doubtful authority, the Wady Gharrah. It enters the Gulf of Bombah
from the south, and is formed by the junction of two smaller depressions, which run
into the low plateau for about 35 miles in a S. and S.W. direction respectively.
Cyrenaica is, as a whole, better supplied with water than any equally large area
6 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
in Eastern Libya. The occurrence of water-courses in the wadys has been noted :
the Gebel el-Ahdar is furnished with numerous good springs, some of which are
remarkably powerful. Along the coast, sites such as Marsa Suzah and Tolmeytah,
which were formerly watered by aqueducts from the hills, are now but poorly supplied
from Mrs and water-holes. In the region about the Gulf of Bombah, which is
desert in character, the water obtained from these sources was formerly supplemented
by that stored in cisterns. In some localities, away from the coast, as at Merg and
Wady Kerayb, ponds of sweet water stand in the bottoms of the wadys. These after
a long drought sometimes go dry, but, even in the cases when this occurs, the vegeta-
tion is sustained by the subterraneous moisture.
Good natural harbours, as has been mentioned, do not exist in Cyrenaica. The
best are Benghazi, which can accommodate small coasters, and the coves of the Gulf
of Bombah, mentioned above. At Tukrah, Tolmeytah, Ras el-Hamadah, Marsa
Suzah, and Ras el-Hillil are boat-landings, but they are all exposed to raking winds
from one or more quarters. It is barely possible that the subsidence of the Cyrenaic
coast line x may have lowered ledges which formerly served as breakwaters, but as no
vestiges of these appear on the charts, it is safe to suppose that until the Greek colonists
in this region improved such anchorages as they found, the coast was anciently as
inhospitable as it is to-day.
The Gebel el-'Akabah, which forms the eastern half of the central section of the
East Libyan littoral, is an elongated mass of limestone capping the northern side
of the great Libyan Coastal Plateau, from Ras el-Mudawr to the Gulf of Solium, a
distance of about 90 miles. The depth of the 'Akabah plateau is only about 25 miles ;
its highest point, so far as known, is not much over 1800 feet. Like the Gebel el-
Ahdar, it is separated from the shore by a narrow ribbon of plain, and its seaward
face is cut by numerous little ravines. The coast, which is rocky, is at Marsa Tobruk
broken by the best harbour of Eastern Libya, the port offering good anchorage even
to large vessels, and being well protected by a high ridge running out easterly from
the land. The Gebel el-'Akabah has been passed by numerous travellers along the
coast road, but its interior has yet to be explored. At present, little more can be
added to what has been said of it than that it appears to be well watered, and the
region to the south of the mountains becomes rapidly mere barren table-land. At
the east end of the Gebel el-'Akabah, the mountains cease abruptly, the Gulf of Solium
lying immediately to the east of the range. In this locality are three small boat-coves :
" Port Bardia," Limreyg, and Solium itself in the S.W. angle of the gulf which bears
its name.
In passing eastwards from the Gulf of Bombah to the Gulf of Solium, this survey
1 Which is proved to have sunk slightly, even within the past 2000 years, as there are buildings of the Ptolemaic
and Roman periods which may now be seen standing in the water at Marsa Suzah. It may here be remarked that the
ruins marked on English charts as standing in the water at Ras el-Mudawr (" Ras allem Dawr ") cannot be adduced as
evidence of coastal subsidence, since they do not exist.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 7
has already crossed the vaguely denned western boundaries of what, in Hellenistic and
Roman times, was known as Marmarica. From Solium to the Egyptian Delta, this
district measures, roughly, 250 miles along an E. by S. trending coast ; its southern
limit is that of the S.E. edge of the Libyan Coastal Plateau which, from the vicinity
of the Delta, runs away W.S.W. toward the Oasis of Siwah. For the most part,
this district consists of an extremely flat expanse of desert limestone, 300 to 500 feet
above sea-level, here and there broken down into small, barren depressions of irregular
shape, and in places diversified with isolated peaks or mongars. Near the edges of the
plateau, especially in the north, occur occasional battias, which in this region are merely
scant patches of camel-thorn and gazelle-grass, watered by the winter rains and heavy
dews. Along the coast itself runs a narrow strip of clayey loam, which is now and
then interrupted by tongues of sand making in from the sea dunes, or by limestone
spurs projecting from the low gebel. The loamy strips, however, when watered by
the winter rains, well repay the crude tillage they receive from the Bedawin, and in the
spring are covered with grasses and wild flowers. At some points, as in the neighbour-
hood of Marsa Matru, this arable land is of considerable extent, and would, with a
little care, produce good crops. 1 The scarcity of water during much of the year,
however, greatly interferes with cultivation. Along the coast it is obtained from
water-holes which are fed by seepage, but which, when left open for a short period,
become too salty for use. Wells, generally of ancient construction, also occur in con-
siderable numbers, as do also cisterns of the Roman period. 2
The Marmaric coast offers several harbours suitable for small craft, though none
are capacious enough for modern commerce. Marsa Matru, for example, is admirably
sheltered from all winds, though, owing to the difficult entrance, it cannot be half as
good a refuge as was the ancient Paraetonium, the harbour, of which is now a deep,
land-locked lagoon immediately west of the modern port. Boat-coves also occur, as
at el-Guttah and Ras ed-Dabbah, but they are all poor and ill-sheltered.
The Libyan Coastal Plateau from Ras el-Kanays eastward, where it is high and
steep, is a little withdrawn from the sea, so as to give place between that point and the
bottom of el-Arabs Gulf for a gently undulating stretch of land about 20 miles deep
and 70 miles long — an area which, if cared for sufficiently, would support a consider-
able population. The plateau is in Marmarica penetrated at only two points by wadys
of any size, but is itself so flat and low that it may easily be traversed in any direction
with no other difficulties than those arising from the scarcity of water and forage.
The former of these difficulties, even, may be obviated in winter, for rain-water collects
in the "clean-ups" on the plateau, and for some time stands in pools and puddles.
At a point S. of Marsa Matru, a slight depression leads toward the oases of Garah and
1 Egyptian Government : District of Mersa Matru ; District of Ras alkm Rum. The arable areas are clearly shown
on these maps.
2 G. Maspero in T. B. Hohler : Oasis of Siva, p. 49 sqq., discusses these wells and cisterns, and arrives at the con-
clusion that they date mainly from the second century a.d., and were used until the end of the fourth century.
8 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Siwah, from the former of which places a similar but less marked valley, the Wady
et-Talat, runs northward some 40 miles. In the east, a little before the plateau is
terminated by the Nile Valley and the Delta, it is crossed in a W.N.W. and E.S.E.
direction by the Wady Natrun, which runs from near the bottom of el-Arabs Gulf to
the apex of the Delta at Gizah. Near the middle of its course occur a number of
sebhas in a locality where drinkable water is to be obtained from wells, and which
is known in the annals of Christianism as the seat of numerous Coptic monasteries.
II. The Libyan Desert
Bordered on the north by the southern edge of the Libyan Coastal Plateau and
the oases lying along its southern declivities, the Libyan Desert stretches away some
800 miles to the northern confines of Darfur and Kordofan in the south, and the
Tibesti and Borku ranges on the southwest. On the east, the desert is diversified by
the Egyptian oases, and bordered by the Nile Valley ; on the west, it is less definitely
delimited by the Hamadas of Fezzan ; and on the northwest by the Harug es-Sod and
the " fertile " Syrtic zone which runs thence to the Oasis of Wagilah. The southern
portion of this region need not here be discussed, since it lies outside the Libyan ethnic
sphere, which may be regarded, as has been said, as practically terminated on the south
by lat. 22 N. In a fashion rough, but sufficiently accurate for present purposes, the
boundaries and oases of the Libyan Desert may thus be traversed, beginning at Wagilah,
and moving thence easterly, southerly, westerly, and northerly.
Wagilah (Augila) to Garabub . . . about 175 miles E.N.E.
Thence to Siwah (Ammonium) . . ,, 80 ,, S.E. by E.
„ Garah (Umm es-Soghayr) . . „ 65 „ N.E. by E.
„ apex of Egyptian Delta . . ,, 270 ,, N. by E.
The last course follows along the south edge of the Libyan Coastal Plateau. Returning
to Siwah :
Thence to Bahariah . . . about 200 miles E.S.E.
Fayum . . . . „ 130 „ N.E. by E.
The area south of the Libyan Coastal Plateau and west of the Siwah-Bahariah-Fayum
line is, as far as known, a confused waste of dunes. Immediately south of the Siwah-
Bahariah-Fayum line, however, a harder gebel of sand and stone begins, extending
S.S.W. from Siwah to the Nile Valley in Nubia.
Bahariah to Farafrah .... about 100 miles S.S.W.
Thence to Iddaylah
„ Abu 'Ungar
Bahariah to Dahlah
Thence to Hargah
,, Beris .
,, Kurkur (in direct line)
,, Nile at Aswan
3°
, W.N.W.
60
, S. by W.
no
, S.S.W.
IOO
, E. by S.
55
, s.
120
, S.E. by E
35
, E.N.E.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA
The traverses given above pass through the Egyptian Oases, the eastern ones of which
— Hargah, Beris, Kurkur — may be said to be in a segment of gebel, bounded on the
east by a great deflection of the Nile toward the Red Sea. The courses of the Nile
itself, the river being the true eastern boundary of the Libyan Desert, from the apex
of the Delta (Cairo) to lat. 2 2° N. are approximately as follows : —
about 50 miles S.
20
„ W.)
85
, S. by W.
1 10
, W. by N.)
65
„ S.S.E.
185
, W. in direct line.)
125
, S. by W.)
150
, S.W. in direct line.)
105
, S.E.
3° ,
, E. by N.
60 ,
, S. (direct).
I2 5 .
, W.)
30
, S.E. by E.
65
„ s.
35
, W.S.W.)
50
, s.
60
, S.E. by S.
J 5
, N.W.
75
, S.W.
Cairo to el-Wastah
(Thence to Medtnet el-Fayum
Wastah to Minyah
(Thence to Bahariah (Kasr)
Minyah to es-Siut
(Thence to Farafrah
(es-Slut to Hargah
(es-Slut to Dahlah
es-Slut to Farshut
Thence to Kenah
„ Esnah
(Esnah to Hargah
Esnah to Edfu
Edfu to Aswan (1st Cataract) .
(Aswan to Kurkur, ut supra
Aswan to Gerf Husseyn (in Nubia)
Thence to Korosko
,, Derr ....
„ Wady Haifa (lat. 21" 5 5' N., 2nd Cataract)
(This completes the Nile traverse.)
From the Nile, lat. 22° N., to N.W. end Tibesti about 950 miles W.
(This course approximately bisects the Libyan Desert.)
From N.W. end Tibesti to W. end Harug es-Sod about 350 miles N. by E.
Thence to Wagilah ....
„ Tayserbo (N. Kufra Oases)
,, Kebabo (S. ,, )
Slghen (N.E. „ )
Kebabo to N.W. end Tibesti .
Of the wide extent just surveyed it may be well said vasta est magis quam frequens}
The greater portion of the whole area is sheer desert of a character as formidable as any
in the entire Sahara. The sand dunes of the Libyan Desert, trending in great ranges
in a S.S.W- direction from the north, lie as an impassable barrier between Fezzan,
Kanem, and Borku on the west, and the Nile Valley and the Egyptian oases on the east.
An examination in more detail of the courses noted above, in the same direction
and from the same starting-place, shows that Wagilah is one of the several small oases
lying in a depression situated about 120 miles S.E. from Muhtar in the Syrtis Major.
The town of Wagilah itself stands in the middle of a demi-lune of palms, which
1 Mela i. 8. Said of Libya in general. Cf. Lucian, De dipsadibus, I : "The southern parts of Libya are all deep
sand and parched soil, a desert of wide extent which produces nothing," etc.
,, 220
•>■)
E.N.E. (direct).
,. 180
u
S.
,, 120
1 5
S.E.
„ IOO
5»
N.
» 3°°
))
S.W. by W.
io THE EASTERN LIBYANS
measures, from end to end, about 6 miles, and which contains, roughly, some 16,000
trees. As is almost invariable with the north Libyan oases, a sebhah occurs not far
from the fertile zone. Water is obtained from wells, most of which are brackish and
some sulphurous.
Some 28 miles E.S.E. of Wagilah is situated the oasis of Galu, with its two towns of
Leb and el-Arh, and palm groves which contain nearly 100,000 trees. At Galu, the
wells are all brackish, the nearest sweet water being six hours distant. N.E. of this oasis
is another belonging to the same group, called Igherri, 18 miles from Galu. The palms
at Igherri are fewer and less cared for than in the other oases of this group, and the
resident Arabs live in palm-leaf huts instead of mud houses. It may be remarked that
anciently the name Augila, which now survives only as the name of the westernmost of
the towns, probably embraced the whole group.
In passing from Galu to Garabub, the traveller encounters a few hattias, but for
the most part the way leads through stony or sandy desert. At Garabub itself, palm-
trees occur, and there are wells which in the last fifty years have been increased in
number by the industry of the Senusi brotherhood, who hold this small oasis as a
place of great sanctity, and among the most important of their possessions.
Between this place and Siwah, several small hattias occur, as at Faghedrah and
Gaygab, and at the extreme western end of the Siwan depression, one falls in upon the
small salt lake of Umm esh-Shiattah, 1 near which there are water-holes, and grazing, and
the hattias of Gerbah, and Umm Ghazlan.
The Siwan oases occupy sites in a depression measuring about 35 miles from
Maraghi in the western end to Zeytun at the eastern ; and about 7 miles from the
declivities of the limestone on the north to the ever-encroaching sand dunes on the
south. There are to-day in the extreme western parts of Maraghi only comparatively
few palms, growing in the neighbourhood of a small salt lake, in the vicinity of which
are several good 'ayns. Besides the palms there are also plots of good arable ground,
which are visited by the Siwans during the summer ; but anciently, as is proved by the
great number of rock-chambered tombs of the Ptolemaic and Roman periods in the
cliffs immediately north of the lake, this district must have been much better cultivated
than at present.
As one approaches Siwah itself, the gardens become more numerous, though
interrupted with sebhas of forbidding aspect and considerable extent. The town from
which the whole locality is named is perched on a limestone outcrop or garah, as is also
Aghurmi, a smaller town situated among the palms 2 miles to the N.E. of Siwah.
The oases contain at present about 163,000 adult palms. Water is plentifully supplied
by the numerous wells, many of which are of Roman construction. Zeytun, at the
eastern end of the oasis, consists of a zawiah belonging to the Senusi, and is surrounded
by gardens similar to those at Siwah itself.
1 O. Bates, Umm es Shiatta and Umm Ghurbi.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA n
Garah, so called from its situation on a conspicuous, isolated outcrop of limestone,
stands in the middle of a hattiah, in which springs and palm groves occur, though less
frequently than in the Siwan depression to the southwestward.
On the way from Siwah to Bahariah (the ancient Oasis Parva), one passes through
the small and poor oases of Gary, 'Arag, and Bahreyn, and thereafter through a desert of
sand and limestone. The oasis of Bahariah x is a large natural excavation in the Libyan
Plateau, entirely surrounded by escarpments, and having within its area a great number
of isolated hills. The oasis is roughly 55 miles in length, and 30 miles across at its
widest part. There are four principal villages in the depression, all in the northern
part, where water is most abundant. The oasis contains nearly 100,000 palms, 2 about
5000 apricot trees, and above that number of olives. Despite its fertility, the general
health of the oasis is far from good, chiefly because of the inferiority of the water supply. 3
The oasis of Farafrah, 4 south of the preceding, is best described as a collection of
some twenty springs, each of which is surrounded by a fertile area, and all of which lie
in a depression in the plateau. The produce of the oasis is barely sufficient for its
inhabitants, who are sometimes constrained to import corn and flour from the other
oases, or from the Nile Valley. 5 The oasis of Iddaylah, near Farafrah, is at present a
mere halting-place where water may be had in passing between Farafrah and Siwah.
Its position, however, warrants mention of this point, as one worthy of notice, since
it lies at the northern end of a large depression which, now covered with drifting sand,
may in ancient historic times have been capable of supporting life.
One of the unsubmerged points in the southern part of the depression in which
Iddaylah lies is the unexplored oasis of Abu 'Ungar. This oasis contains four wells and a
number of ancient remains, but its inaccessibility, and its position towards the Senusi
centre of Kufra, are the causes for its being at present uninhabited. 6
The next oasis to be considered, that of Dahlah, 7 anciently included in the
Oasis Magna of the Romans, 8 is from its size and population the most important
of the Egyptian oases at present. This oasis lies along a portion of an E.-W.
escarpment of eocene limestone which rises to the north of it, and numbers many wells
and springs, and some fifteen villages or hamlets. There are, all told, 200,000 palms in
the oasis, 9 and a good deal of land is under cultivation, apart from the palm groves.
Nearly due east of the preceding, and also anciently a part of the Oasis Magna, lies
Hargah. 10 The oasis depression is hemmed in on the northwest, north, and east by
1 J. Ball and H. J. L. Beadnell, Baharia Oasis, passim.
2 About 15 per capita, as opposed to 7.5 and 8.0 per capita in Dahlah and Hargah respectively. J. Ball and
H. J. L. Beadnell, op. cit. p. 43 sq. 3 Ibid. p. 44.
4 H. J. L. Beadnell, Farafra Oasis. Farafrah is to be identified with the ancient Oasis Trinitheos. 5 Ibid. p. 11.
6 L. V. Royle, verbal communication. Binbashi Royle, learning of the existence of Abu 'Ungar, visited the oasis
some years ago, in company with another officer.
7 H. J. L. Beadnell, Dakhla Oasis.
8 The Greek AiWts MeyaA.97. For the classical division of the Egyptian oases, Georgii Cyprii Descriptio Orbis Roman:,
p. 139^?.
9 H. J. L. Beadnell, op. cit. p. 14. 10 J- Ball, Kharga Oasis.
i2 ■ THE EASTERN LIBYANS
scarpments of limestone ; on the west, a barrier of vast sand dunes runs parallel to the
eastern scarpment. Within the oasis depression a large number of hills rise from
the floor. 1 The cultivable areas, lying principally in the north and south of the
depression, are well supplied with pools and 'ayns, and are extremely fertile, the oasis
containing in all 60,000 adult palm-trees. 2 There are four towns or large villages and
half a dozen hamlets.
Beris, which appears in the rough traverse of the oases given above, is really but the
chief place in the southern part of Hargah Oasis, as its name implies. 3 It is the largest
village in the oasis, and contains a remarkably large thermal well ('Ayn Hushi). 4
Southeasterly from Beris lies Kurkur, 5 the last of the Egyptian oases. This oasis
is small and at present uninhabited, but is important as a station on the natural desert
road connecting the Egyptian oases with the Nile Valley in Nubia. It contains two
wells and a number of scrub-palms.
The halting-places to be found in the west Nubian desert from Kurkur to Selimah
need not be particularized : but beyond the south Libyan desert the chief features of
the western boundary of Eastern Libya deserve brief notice.
III. West — Chad Route Oases : Hamadah el-Homrah : Hamadah Murzuk
The western boundary of Eastern Libya is a more arbitrary one than the others,
but is at least marked geologically, and in some degree orographically, by a great wedge
of limestone penetrating between Kufra and Murzuk southward toward Tibesti. From
the intersection of lat. 20 N. with long. 18 E., on the north slopes of the Tu or
Tibesti range, it is about 250 miles N.W. to Tummo, or War, which lies on the west
side of the duffah, on the Chad-Tripoli road. From War to the Harug es-Sod, which
has been mentioned above, it is about 375 miles N.E. by N., at first along the western
edge of the limestone duffah over the Chad route and through Gatrun, and then across
the western expansion of the duffah itself, which runs toward the sunset into the
Hamadah el-Homrah. Along the edge followed by the Chad road exist a number of
small hattias and oases. Nearly due north of War, 200 miles distant, lies Murzuk. It
is situated on the Hamadah of that name, a formation running W.S.W. and E.N.E.
some 250 miles, and in the latitude of Murzuk is separated from the duffah just
mentioned by about y$ miles of sand desert. The latter contains between the town and
the edge of the duffah a number of small grazing-places and some water.
On the north side of the Hamadah Murzuk, as along the south, lies a desert of
sand dunes. The northern desert, the Erg el-Edeyen, is bounded on the north by the
Hamadah el-Homrah. In a line taken N.W. from Murzuk to the south edge of
1 J. Ball, Kharga Oasis, p. 38. 2 /^_ p 4 g_
3 u-iy is seemingly a corruption of the Egyptian t= j- 1 ^ ^ , pr-rs, "the south mansion."
4 J. Ball, op. cit. p. 59. 5 Idem> j eM Garra md the Qasis y Kurkur _
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 13
this Hamadah it is roughly 225 miles across the sands ; prolonged across the Hamadah
el-Homrah some 150 miles farther in the same direction, the line would reach
Ghadames. This last-named town is some 240 miles due south of the Shott el-Gerid,
the chief of the salt lakes which have been several times mentioned before, and which
extend for about 1 20 miles westerly in from the Gulf of Kabes. Ghadames, to return
to that point, is located on the northern edge of the Hamadah el-Homrah ; the terrible
desert of the Erg el-Kebir lies between the town and the Red Hamadah on the one
hand, and the oases of the territory of Tuggurt in the west, on the other. At its
northern extremity the Erg el-Kebir approaches the Shott el-Gerid to within a very
short distance.
The western boundary just defined is of a very desert character. The mountains of
Tu or Tibesti, however, are high (Mount Tusidde, circa 6700 feet above sea-level) and
fertile. The range is little known, only one European having crossed it and returned
alive. 1 The duffah north from Tibesti has on it a good many sandy areas, and is for the
most part sheer desert. A few hattias do, however, occur, especially toward the west.
The northwestern region, like the southern district, is mostly desert, erg and hamadah
there succeeding each other until the fertile zone is reached in the vicinity of Southern
Tunisia and Western Tripolitana.
IV. Internal Geography — Routes : Rates of Travel
The internal geography of Eastern Libya needs to be noticed, since both the
population of the country and its culture have been greatly influenced by the position of
the routes that run through it. The roads are of two sorts — primary and secondary.
The former are the great kafilah tracks over which pass the caravans that undertake
journeys a month or two in length ; the latter are the shorter routes connecting one
permanent centre with another. The former are the links between regions ; the latter
are the links between towns.
In the north, the first line to be noted is the great E.-W. route running
parallel to the coast. This is the Darb el-Hag, so called because it is used by the
Moslemin of the Moghreb in making the pilgrimage to Mekkah. A glance at this
road shows that, while the coast along which it runs is largely of a desert character,
the shore line itself offers less obstacles to an E.-W. land-progress than do the opposite
shores of the Mediterranean. The latter are diversified with capes and mountainous
promontories ; with the great peninsulas of Greece and Italy ; with the seas into which
these project — the Aegean, the Adriatic, and the Tyrrhenian. The African coast, on the
other hand, runs west from Egypt to Tunisia without any abrupt break ; only at one
part the crescent of the Cyrenaic plateau pushes out into the Mediterranean, while to
1 G. Nachtigal, Sahara und Sudan, passim. More, it is hoped, will shortly be known of this obscure part of Africa. In
191 1 an Austrian expedition purposed to carry out in this region a plan of penetration which, even in the annals of Saharan
exploration, deserved to be called bold. Vide GJ, vol. xxxvii. No. I (Jan. 191 1), p. 95 sq. Unfortunately it failed.
H THE EASTERN LIBYANS
the west of this the sea turns into the North African coast in the great bights of the
Syrtes. The Darb el-Hag is really shorter by a little than the coast line itself, for
having followed the curves of the shore from Kabes to Benghazi, it thence strikes across
to the Gulf of Bombah, following the southern declivities of the Cyrenaic plateau. From
Bombah it again runs easterly to Egypt, having the sea in sight upon the left for almost
the whole of the way. The greatest obstacle offered by the Darb el-Hag to travellers
moving in a large body is the lack of water, but it is nevertheless feasible even for
armies. Thus, General Eaton, though not without great hardships, led his American
forces over part of this route in 1805 from Alexandria to Bombah in about thirty days. 1
Cato succeeded in marching his 10,000 men from Cyrenaica to the western extremity
of the Syrtes by dividing them into small bodies, for each of which a sufficient supply
of water could be found. 2 Even without this device a very large body of nomadic
people, inured to desert hardship and well supplied with animals to carry water and
food, could probably traverse the Darb el-Hag from Kabes to Alexandria in from fifty
to sixty days — at least, in the season of the rains. Cyrenaica, it may be observed in
conclusion, being fertile and well watered, affords a recruiting station midway on
this road.
Beside the Darb el-Hag, one other road crosses Eastern Libya running east and
west. It lies in the interior, and is different in character -from the coast route in this
respect — that whereas the former serves chiefly to carry traffic from one of its
extremities to the other, the latter is really a succession of secondary roads which
may nevertheless be traversed in an easterly and westerly direction. By this route one
marches from Tripoli in a S.E. direction to Sohnah ; thence to Zellah and Abu Naym ;
and on to Wagilah and Siwah ; from which last oasis the road may be taken either
E.N.E. to the Egyptian Delta, or E. to the Nile via Bahariah. Except for reasons
of trade, this road is ^seldom used in its entirety, though the eastern end of it, from
Wagilah to Egypt, is taken a good deal by the Arabs of Cyrenaica during the winter,
to escape the rains and cold of the Darb el-Hag.
Except for this last-named route, all the primary roads of Eastern Libya are those
which, having a N.-S. direction, connect the Mediterranean with the Sudan. The first
and foremost of these links is the historic Chad to Tripoli road, which for over two
thousand years has been the main channel through which the exportable products of
Central Africa found their way to Europe. This famous line of march 3 passes from
one small oasis to another, 4 in a direction almost due north from Lake Chad to
1 Anonymous, History of the War^ between the U.S. and Tripoli, etc., p. 121 sqq. ; R. Grcenhow, History and Present
Condition of Tripoli, etc., p. 22 sqq. It is difficult to find how many marching hours were consumed in the journey, as the
expedition was delayed by mutinies and other causes. The forces left Alexandria on March 6, 1805, and arrived at Bombah
on April 16.
2 Strabo xvii. p. 836 ; Plutarch, Cato Minor, § 56. It is Strabo who mentions the division of the army into small
bodies. Plutarch says that Cato employed donkeys to carry his water-supply.
3 Denham, Oudney, and Clapperton, Narrative of Travels ; H. Vischer, Across the Sahara ; H. Barth, Reisen und
Entdeckungen. These works alone will suffice to give the reader a good idea of the Chad route.
* Small oases, when not too widely separated, have throughout the Sahara had something the same effect upon the
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 15
Murzuk, about 725 miles distant. Some of the oases which it threads are places
capable of supporting permanent populations, as is the case at Teda and Kanuri.
Towns also occur along the way. From mere halting-places some of these, as Bilmah,
Tummo, or War, and Gatrun, have grown to be of considerable size ; War derives
additional importance from being at that point on the Chad road where a divergent
trail strikes off S.S.E. from the main line into the ranges of Tibesti or Tu. Similarly,
from Gatrun a road between the north and east leads to Wagilah, and so to Benghazi
or to Egypt.
Murzuk is a centre, or ganglion^ of the Saharan body, and is of the greatest
importance. Despite the unhealthfulness of its situation, the effects of which are
clearly visible in the faces of the residents, 1 Murzuk is a large town. This is because
it is at the focus of great roads. From Murzuk the caravans may pass E.N.E. to
Wagilah, and so to Benghazi and Egypt, or north to Sohnah, a minor centre, from
which they march N.W. to Tripoli town, about 475 miles from Murzuk, and thus
1300 from Lake Chad. Sohnah, just mentioned, is united with the east by a road
running to Zellah, Abu Naym, and Wagilah.
Another great road to the south is that having its head at Ghat, and running
into the Ai'r and Niger Territories. With this, however, as it lies in Western rather
than in Eastern Libya, this survey is not concerned. Ghat is situated at the western
extremity of the Hamadah Murzuk, and is linked with the latter place by a short
but difficult route. North of Ghat lies Ghadames, a centre of primary importance,
situated at the junction of several great desert highways. It is not directly connected with
Murzuk, from which it is separated by the Hamadah el-Homrah and the Erg el-Edeyen.
It is, however, connected with Ghat on the south, as has just been mentioned ; with
the Tedemait oases ; and especially with In Salah, lying beyond the Hamadah et-
Tinghert on the S.W. ; with Wargla and Ghardayah in the W.N.W., and so with
Laghwat at the foot of the Saharan Atlas. In the marts of Ghadames, therefore, are
exposed merchandise from the Sudan, the Atlas, Tripoli, and Europe, and the caravaneers
of the north coast who do not know this oasis-town are not many.
To be included among the primary routes rather because of its length and
directness than because of the amount of traffic it bears, is a line of march lying east
of the Chad-Tripoli road. Within the last century it has come to have somewhat
more importance than formerly, though the long stretches of waterless desert it traverses
will prevent its ever being much used. The route in question is that running south
from Wagilah to Kufra, and thence on to Wanyanga (Wadyanga) and Borku. It is
at present chiefly frequented by emissaries going to or from the Sidi el-Mahdi es-Senusi,
now resident at Kufra, rather than by merchant-caravaneers.
The last primary road which need be noticed is that penetrating the Sudan from
desert populations that the Aegean Islands have had on Greece. They tempt the adventurous, form half-way houses
between distant points, and tend to produce small, hardy, and venturesome communities.
1 Denham, Oudney, and Clapperton, op. cit. vol. i. p. xlviii.
1 6 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Hargah, and called, from the number of days taken in traversing it, the Darb el-
Arba'in, or " Forty Road." This road runs S. by W. to Selimah, a small oasis
where grazing and water are to be had, about 200 miles from Beris, just south of
Hargah. Thence the Darb el-Arbaln strikes off S.W. across the sands of the south
Libyan Desert, passes through the wretched hattiah of Zaghawah, and goes on into
Darfur, where it may be said to end at Masrub.
Of the secondary roads it need only be remarked that they form a network of
convenient tracks between such inhabited places as are not far removed from each other,
and which will be mentioned briefly later in this chapter in connection with the
distribution of man in Eastern Libya.
A few words may here be added in regard to desert travel, since it is important
for the reader to know something both of the means by which communication can be
carried on in Eastern Libya, and of the rates of march.
The simplest and most primitive fashion of travelling in the desert is one which
is only practicable for short distances, and which hardly exists on any extensive scale
to-day — it is for the traveller to sling a kerbah across his shoulders and then trudge
along on foot. 1 If a number of men share in carrying the water, journeys slightly
longer than those of which a single man is capable may be undertaken. The rate
of this sort of going depends largely on the ground and the time of year, but may be
said to lie between 1 5 and 20 miles a day, according to season, footing, and number
of men. To carry water by animals is, of course, immeasurably more convenient. The
animals used for this purpose in Africa are the ass, 2 bullock, horse, and camel. The
last is not native to Africa, but was known to the Libyans centuries before the
irruptions of the Arabs. The ass and the bullock, under favourable conditions, can do
20 miles a day ; the horse between 25 and 35. 3 All three of these animals are
capable of adapting themselves to desert life to some degree, Bedawin horses, for
instance, learning to go frequently for two, or even three days without water. One
difficulty, however, attends the use of all three, for even short journeys : on hamadah
or duffah, or even where the sand is mixed with pebbles, their feet suffer terribly. A
horse that has come north from Wadai to Wagilah or Siwah usually arrives, despite
the fact that he is fairly well cared for on the way, with his hoofs split and tattered
so badly that the wretched beast goes lame on all four feet. Between the camel and
the other animals named above, there is, from the point of view of desert travel, no
comparison for a moment. At a pinch, a good camel can go seven days without
water ; it can live off bitter thorns, or stiff weshkah (palm-scrub) ; it can carry a
weight of two kantars (200 lbs.) for forty-eight hours at a stretch ; and its eyes, nose
1 C. M. Doughty, Wanderings in Arabia, vol. i. p. 24. A fatal instance of this sort of travel is there recorded.
2 A single man goes readily enough from Garah to Siwah with a donkey which carries its own and its driver's
supplies of food and water for three days.
s For bullocks, cf. S. Augustinus, vol. xvi. p. 526, Garamantum regibus tauri placuerunt {sell, for travelling) ;
Aymard, La Touareg, p. 1 1 8 sq. Pis. 18,19 for photographs of pack-bullocks, ringed through the nose, and in use in the S.W.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 17
and ears are all wonderfully protected from the sand. In addition, the foot of the
camel is a tough and elastic pad protected in front by the horny nails of the two toes.
Even for kneeling on a stony desert ground, the camel is armed with thick callouses
on his knees, and a callous pad on the breast. In short, this animal, so ungainly and
unattractive at first sight, seems on further acquaintance a walking assemblage of
desert " points." The rates of travel among camels vary. A hamlah camel plods
over almost any road at about 2^ miles an hour, or 25 to 30 miles a day. A hagin or
trotting camel of good breed, on the other hand, can do 40 miles a day without
difficulty, and over 50 if necessary. These paces the camel can maintain for a fairly long
march, if only it be well fed ; for whereas it can go far without drinking, it must
be fed with as much regularity as possible.
V. Geographic Position with regard to Outlying Regions — The West :
The South : The East : The North
The areas which have been outlined as constituting Eastern Libya present certain
general characteristics which differentiate that region as a whole from those contiguous
to it. With the great E.N.E.-W.S.W. ranges of the Atlas system on the north-west
Eastern Libya has nothing to compare. To the west, the Sahara is diversified with
larger habitable areas than are contained in the Libyan Desert, while to the south lie
the fertile ranges of Tibesti and Borku, north of the Chad district, and the cultivable
territories of Wadai and Darfur. To the east extends the Nile Valley, which is, of
course, of extraordinary fertility, throughout its length.
In the north-west, Eastern Libya is the natural goal of peoples passing eastward
through the long Atlas valleys ; from the west it may be readily invaded by desert
peoples from the Tassili-n-Asgar or Air. In the south it is only the present character of -
the Sudanese cattle-grazers that leads to the raids being from north to south, rather than
the reverse ; for the country is in that quarter guarded only partially by the Tibesti
range. In the east, Eastern Libya has access to Egypt through the oases, which are
themselves, however, so placed as to be debatable ground.
Broadly speaking, it may be said that it is mainly from the west and north-
west that Eastern Libya, as a whole, is subject to incursions on a grand scale. For
a population hemmed in by the Atlas mountains and moved eastwards along valleys by
pressure exerted in the west is inevitably forced, as has just been said, into the East
Libyan littoral zone. And from the west, nomadic tribesmen, there inured to desert
life, may with ease expand in a direction toward the east and north-east. Only severe
pressure from the south would force the pastoral Negro and negroid populations of the
Chad region into the desert, as, once started on a migration, they would tend naturally
to traverse the well-watered lands of the Sudan in a westerly or easterly direction. 1 The
cultivator of the Nile Valley again, as is usually the case with peoples habitually
1 As may be seen in the case of the Fulah or Fulbe peoples.
1 8 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
dependent on irrigation, has shown himself ready to submit to almost any degree of
oppression rather than take his liberty with him into the desert. The one serious
invasion which seems to have penetrated Eastern Libya from the east is that of the
Mohammadan Arabs. But not only was that invasion in itself attended with many
circumstances which cannot be associated with racial migrations in general, but its
main course was not, if one excepts the early raiding into Fezzan, deflected from the
littoral zone, which it traversed to reach the richer regions of the west.
In the north, to turn now to those regions facing the Libyan coast across the
eastern Mediterranean, at one point Cyrenaica is but a short day's sail removed from
Crete, the distance between Cape Krio and Dernah being but 150 miles. 1 The position
of the island with respect to the Libyan coast is indeed such as to attract attention in
even a casual glance at the chart. For a distance of 135 miles it lies east and west, in a
direction parallel to the trend of the Marmaric coast. Small craft passing from Crete
to Egypt still generally run due south from the island 180 miles to Ras el-Milh, and
thence easterly to Alexandria. It was the proximity of Crete to the African Pentapolis
that led to the administrative union of the two as the single Roman province of Creta-
Cyrene or Creta et Cyrene. Despite the scarcity of harbours on the African side, there
are several small ports, such as Dernah, the Gulf of Bombah, Marsa Bahat, Marsa
Tobruk, " Port Bardia," and Limreyg, which all lie under the island, and Crete itself has
numerous small havens along its southern coast. As a " half-way house " between Crete
and Egypt, the western portion of Marmarica must have been visited by ships at a very
early period.
From the mainland of Greece itself the African coast is, of course, farther removed,
the shortest distance being 207 miles, from Cape Matapan to Ras el-Hillil. As, how-
ever, early navigators preferred always to hold the land in sight, and so take their
departure for the African coast from some point on the south coast of Crete, the relative
positions of Libya and the Greek mainland are of only secondary importance. The same
remark applies with even greater force to Asia Minor, distant some 300 miles.
The western part of the East Libyan littoral, it is evident at a glance, is farther
removed from the European mainland, the Mediterranean widening in the Syrtic Gulfs
toward the south, and in the Ionian Sea toward the north. From Ras Mizratah west-
ward to the Gulf of Kabes, however, the African coast lies under the island of Sicily,
which is 120 miles nearer this section of the Libyan coast than it is to Cyrenaica. 2
Malta and Gozzo lie in line with Sicily and the Libyan coast, it being about 190 miles
from the former island due south to the African main. But it is not with the Tripolitan
coast that Sicily and Malta come most closely into relations with Africa. For on
coming from the east to Tunisia, the Libyan coast bends sharply northward for
about three degrees of latitude, and so approaches not only the islands mentioned but
1 From Ras et-Tin to the island of Gaudo (Gaulis) is but 135 miles. A vessel making the passage between these two
points would, in fair weather, be out of sight of land for only about 100 miles.
2 Cape Passero to Benghazi, 365 miles ; Tripoli Town to south coast of Sicily, about 245 miles.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 19
Sardinia as well. As this bend lies northwards of the Shott el-Gerid, it is outside the
region which has been designated as Eastern Libya ; but as the connecting link between
that region and Sardinia and Sicily it deserves at least passing notice. From Cape Bon
(N.E. Tunisia) to Marsalla is under 80 miles ; from the same point on the coast it is
under 159 miles to Cape Spartivento (S. Sardinia), a point which in direct (N.-S.) line is
only 100 miles from the African coast. These distances are not such, at a favourable
time of year, as to deter even the most timorous navigators from crossing in either
direction. It is, therefore, not a matter for surprise to find the warlike Sardinian pirates
acting in concert with the East Libyans at a very early period, since from Sardinia they
could reach the African coast in a short day, and thereafter follow the littoral either to
the west or the east. 1
The chief features of the littoral having thus been touched on, it may be added that the
region belongs to the eastern and central Mediterranean, being, as has just been pointed
out, connected with the central islands and the west by the N.E. littoral of Tunisia.
Except in Cyrenaica, the Libyan coast presents no great attraction to invaders from the
north, and, in fact, the formation of the coast is such as to encourage the belief that such
extraneous ethnological elements as directly entered Eastern Libya from the north came
in by way of Tunisia or Cyrenaica.
VI. Climatology and Health
Eastern Libya lies under two climatic zones — the Mediterranean and the Saharan. 2
The district of the Mediterranean climate is that to which has already been applied
the term " Littoral fertile zone." The region in question, not being at any point one
of great width, and not presenting any barriers, toward the north, high enough to be
of climatic importance, enjoys throughout its length the weather of the southern
Mediterranean.
The prevailing winds along this coastal region, especially in summer, are northerly,
while in winter and autumn there is a high percentage of southerlies. In the spring,
the kibly, or hot southerly scirocco, is frequent, 3 its occurrence being unknown in
summer, and its season, therefore, corresponding to that of the Egyptian hamsin. The
following table gives the percentages of the directions of the winds for the four seasons,
based on the observations recorded at Benghazi, in the central part of the coast line,
during the four years from 1891 to 1894 : — i
1 H. R. Hall, Oldest Civilization of Greece, p. 181 sq., certainly, to my thinking, underrates the sailing qualities of
early ships. This point cannot here be debated at length, but I have considered the evidence, and as one fairly familiar
with sailing vessels of small tonnage, may say that I do not believe that there were any grave practical difficulties in
navigating between Sicily, Sardinia, and Libya, or between Libya and Crete, even in the Old Empire.
2 Oribasius, Collect, medica, ix. 7, correctly states that, owing to the influence of the sea, the littoral climate of Libya
is more equable than that of the interior. 3 G. Hildebrand, Cyrenaika, p. 206. 4 Ibid. p. 204.
20
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
N.
N.E.
E.
S.E.
s.
s.w.
w.
N.W.
Prevalent Winds.
Winter
12.8
I.I
+4
6.4
374
9.0
21. s
74
s., w.
Spring
3 2 -7
*-7
2.9
3-5
24.5
5.2
i3-9
14.6
N., S.
Summer
70.5
4.2
4-7
1.0
5-7
'4
4.8
1-1
N.
Autumn
29.2
3-8
4-3
7.6
344
3-8
10. 1
6.8
S., N.
The rainfall in the littoral zone occurs annually, the wet season generally extending
from October to May, but the amount of rain is very irregular 1 from year to year.
Droughts may occur owing to slightness of successive rainfalls and protracted summers,
but they are not often severe. In its distribution, the rain falls more frequently near
the shore, though extending so far south as almost to reach Siwah in the east, and
the Hamadah el-Homrah in the west. The following is the mean of the rainfalls for
four years at Benghazi : —
Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
Apr.
May.
June.
July.
Aug. 2
Sept. 2
Oct. 2
Nov.
Dec.
mm.
13 1
83
30
2
3
O
O
1
9
4 1
I02
This gives the mean yearly total of 402 mm. — a mean of 8 1 mm. for the winter,
of 1 mm. for the spring, of o mm. for the summer, and of 50 mm. for the autumn.
The rainfall at Tripoli Town for three years was 547.6 mm., 662.8 mm., 224.0 mm.,
giving a mean of 478 mm. 3
The temperature of the littoral zone is moderate, verging on the subtropical.
In the highest parts of the Gebel Nafusa and the Cyrenaic Plateau the thermometer
never rises as high as it does at some points which are actually on the sea coast,
approximately i° C. of temperature being lost with every 2000 feet of ascent. The
average temperatures for four years at Benghazi were monthly as follows : — 4
Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
Apr.
May.
June.
J«iy-
Aug.
Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Degrees C.
12. 5
13-3°
17-3°
18.5"
21. 9
24.4°
26.1
26.3°
25.9°
24.4°
i 9 .o°
J 5-3°
This gives a yearly average of 20. 4 C, with a variation of 13. 8° between the extremes
1 2. 5 (January) and 26. 3 (August). This yearly average of 20. 4 C. is nearly equal to
that of Kabes (19. 6°) or of Tripoli Town (19. 9 ), 5 though below the annual mean of
Southern Tunisia, away from the immediate vicinity of the coast (21. I ). 6
1 G. Hildebrand, Cyrenatka, p. 210. As proof of this irregularity, see the table there given of the monthly rainfalls
for 1 89 1 to 1894, inclusive, at Benghazi.
2 These months, being omitted during one year, are averaged on three instead of four records.
3 G. Ayra, Tripoli e il mo clima, p. 63.
4 G. Hildebrand, op. cit, p. 226. 6 Ibid. p. 222. 6 Ibid. p. 233.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA
21
The range of temperature at Benghazi (13. 8°) is a good deal over that of Mogador
(6.0 ), 1 which, though practically under the same parallel, is more exposed to the
equalizing action of a greater body of water than is Benghazi. It is, however, significant
of much less violent seasonal change than the range of variation, for example, of
Mesopotamia (26. o ), 2 situated to the eastwards on the same parallel. The seasonal
averages for Benghazi are as follows : spring, 19. 2 ; summer, 25. 6° ; autumn, 23.1° ;
winter, 13.7 . 3 In the above figures, the intense heat which may for a short time
prevail during a kibly does not appear as a factor. It is doubtful if the 132 F.
(55-5° C.) recorded by one traveller as accompanying a kibly 4 was ever really recorded,
but for the thermometer to stand at 50° C. for an hour or more during the height
of these distressing winds is not unknown.
In conclusion of this short treatment of the littoral zone, it may be said that the
region is one well adapted to man- — especially for primitive man living largely in the
open- — from the climatic point of view. The seasons, as throughout the lower levels
along the Mediterranean, are marked by the winter rains and the summer droughts,
and while not as strikingly differentiated as in northern Europe, are nevertheless
accompanied by appreciable changes of winds and temperature.
In leaving the littoral for the interior, one passes at once into a climatic region
that extends from the Mediterranean zone on the north, to the region of tropical
rainfall on the south. Deficient as are the data with regard to the littoral climate of
Eastern Libya, the sources of knowledge for the interior are much more scanty. Owing
to this lack of evidence, it is necessary to base most of the following remarks on
observations taken a number of years ago, at the extreme north-western confines of
Eastern Libya.
The following table of percentages is approximately indicative of the winds
prevalent during the year in the interior western parts of Eastern Libya. 5
N.
N.E.
E.
S.E.
s.
s.w.
w.
N.W.
Prevalent Winds.
Winter
I 1.0
14.5
17-5
14.5
12. s
12.0
6.0
I2.0
N.E., E., S.E.
Spring
13.0
14.4
30.6
13-6
1 0.1
3-7
6-3
8-3
E., N.E., S.E.
Summer
I 0.0
20.0
30.I
16.7
11.7
3-3
1.6
6.6
E., N.E., S.E.
Autumn
00.0
14-3
Z5.0
7.2
14.3
32.0
7.2
00.0
S.W., E.
In connection with this table, it should be observed that calms are common in
August and December, while September, October, and November are almost perfectly
windless, about 90 per cent of the days being quite so. From the table given above,
1 G. Hildebrand, op. cit. p. 225. 2 Ibid. he. cit. s Ibid. pp. 224, 225.
4 H. Gorringe, Coast of Africa, in J AG NT, vol. xiii. p. 54.
5 These percentages I have computed from the tables published by H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nerd, p. 91 sqq.
and p. 124.
22
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
it is clear that the prevalent winds are E., veering towards the south during the
summer heats, and towards the north in winter.
The hygrometry of the desert parts of Eastern Libya is exceedingly variable. A
sudden drop in surface temperature owing to winds may, even in the most desolate
districts, be followed by one or two nights of heavy dews. 1 Dew is also likely to fall
on nights following showers of rain. Rain itself may not descend in certain parts of
the desert for periods of ten, twenty, or even thirty years, but it is safe to assert that
of no known region of the Libyan Desert may it be said that it is quite without
rainfall. Rain may, even in very desert parts of the country, descend for a short
period with a torrential violence which is almost tropical. Thus, in Nubia, which
partakes largely of the desert climate, terrific local "cloud-bursts" are experienced
at intervals varying in length from ten to twenty years. On these occasions, the rain
descends in sheets for perhaps an hour, the flat, thatched roofs of the houses are beaten
in, irrigated fields are turned to shallow pools of water, and the hors, or gullies, along
the edge of the desert become the beds of raging streams which carry with them stones
and small boulders to the lower levels. Beside these periodic deluges, rain may fall
in slight showers in many parts of desert Libya — especially in the north and south-
west — at any time of year. But years may go by without these rains, and they
cannot therefore be depended upon for agriculture, or even for grazing.
The temperatures of Eastern Libya in the interior are generally higher than those
in the littoral zone. This in itself is of less importance than the great range between
maximum and minimum. The sands and rocks of the desert which during the day
receive and reflect the heat, begin to cool rapidly shortly before the sun has gone
down. By midnight the radiation has practically ceased, and the temperature of the
gebel is approximately that of the cool night air. There is also great local variation
away from the equalizing influence of the sea, altitude being in the desert a great
factor in temperature. The following table, based on materials collected by Lieut.
J. Ayer 2 in Tuggurt, contiguous to Eastern Libya on the west, is here presented as
offering results based on more ample observations than any yet taken actually within
the Saharan portions of Eastern Libya itself.
Jan.*
Feb.*
Mar.*
22.5"
Apr.*
May.
June.
July.
Aug.
Sept.*
Oct.*
Nov.
Dec.
Degrees C.
15.4°
17.6°
29.8°
3+-9°
38.5°
+ 3- 6 °
+i.s-
40.8°
4°-5°
22.3"
14.9
The maximum temperature observed by Duveyrier in Eastern Libya was 44. 6°
(8th and 26th July) at Murzuk ; the minimum — 2.1 (18th December) at Timellulen,
1 Personal observation.
2 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 114, where the table from which the mensual means have been calculated will be found.
Those means marked with an asterisk (*) are based on four years' observations ; the rest on three. The temperatures
here used were taken at 2.30 p.m.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA
2 3
in the western part of the Hamadah el-Homrah. This gives the range of 46. 7 as
compared to the variation of 13 to 14° in the littoral.
The annual mean, computed from the same source as the above mensual averages,
is therefore rather misleading — it works out to 30.2 . The mensual averages clearly
show the division into cold and hot periods which are the only " seasons " in the desert
year. The cold lasts from December to March ; the heat from June to September. 1
For the Eastern portion of the interior zone, valuable data have been collected
by the Egyptian Survey Department at Dahlah. The prevalent winds, as calculated
from the detailed report for 1908, 2 are as follows : —
N.
N.E.
E.
S.E.
s.
s.w.
w.
N.W.
Prevalent Winds.
Winter
67.4
OO.O
OO.O
00.0
00.0
00.0
00. 1
32.5
N., N.W.
Spring
48.0
2-3
0.7
00.0
00.0
o-3
3-o
45-7
N., N.W.
Summer
39- 6
1.8
OO.O
00.0
00.0
0.8
2.2
55.6
N.W., N.
Autumn.
20.6
7-3
OO.O
00.0
00.0
00.0
2.6
69.5
N.W., N.
The striking feature in the above table is the absence of south winds. For half
the year, during winter and spring, the prevailing winds are northerly, hauling round
to the north-west in summer and autumn. The shift at the beginning of winter is so
striking in the above table that one is inclined to suspect that the observations from
which the percentages have been compiled were taken during an exceptional year, but
further records are needed before this can be proved.
The rainfalls at Dahlah are so irregular and insignificant that they cannot be
tabulated to advantage. The following list, kindly prepared by the director of the
Helwan Observatory, 3 will serve to show the nature of the rainfalls : —
Remarks.
Rain (irca 5 mm.
„ afternoon ; slight.
„ for 4 hours, beginning 8 p.m.
„ in the morning ; slight.
is it » "
„ for 7 hours in the morning.
„ slight.
„ for 5 minutes at noon ; slight.
„ slight.
Date.
1905
Feb.
2
Oct.
16
Nov.
12
1906
Feb.
7
)>
9
■>■>
11
■>■>
H
1908
May
18
1909
Jan.
17
•>■>
27
■>■>
28
May
16
1911
Jan.
26
for 10 minutes at 3 p.m. ; slight.
circa 5 mm.
1 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 106.
2 Egyptian Government, Meteorological Report for igoS, p. 182 sqq.
3 Mr. B. F. E. Keeling, to whom I am greatly indebted also for valuable advice on several points connected with
this chapter.
24
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
The monthly temperatures for 1908 at Dahlah, as recorded for the Survey
Department, are as follows : —
Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
Apr.
May.
June.
July.
Aug.
Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Degrees C. at 2 p.m.
174°
18.2°
2 3-4°
29.4°
3Z-7"
347"
35- 1 "
37-i"
35-4°
30.6°
25.2°
20.6°
Daily Means
13.0°
13-3°
18.6°
24-3°
27-3°
29.7°
30.1°
30.0°
28.2°
23.8°
17.0°
12. r
This gives a yearly mean at 2 p.m. of 28. 3 , and a yearly mean of daily means
of 22. 3 . The maximum recorded above is 37. i° (August). The lowest absolute
minimum recorded in 1908 was 00.0° for February. This gives a range 37. i° for the
2 p.m. monthly means as opposed to 46. 7 in the west, or 13° to 14 in the north.
These figures, relating to three widely separated portions of Eastern Libya, will
suffice to give some idea of the climate of the country.
Even so short an account as the present one of the East Libyan climate would not
be justified in passing over the atmospheric phenomena of the desert without comment.
Solar halos and mock-suns are not infrequently seen, and lunar halos are common,
especially where the desert approaches the littoral region. Rainbows may occur during
a shower. Thunder and lightning are frequent accompaniments of the great periodic
storms. The sunlight in the desert is intense, even to the point of being painful. In
conjunction with the heat, it effects mirages, which are sometimes of extraordinary
clearness. Usually, however, these take the simple form of a sheet of glittering water
seen in a distant depression, the image being more clearly visible to one walking or
close to the ground than to one mounted on a horse or camel. 1
To conclude this notice on the present climatology of Libya, it may be said that
the desert climate is so distinct from that of the Mediterranean zone on the north,
or from that of the tropical zone on the south, that it may be properly regarded as
Saharan, and continental. It is marked by two seasons, the hot and the cold, which are
independent of the rainfall, but vary greatly with altitude and remoteness from the sea.
For long periods no rain may fall in any given locality ; it may then descend in a
torrential storm, or in showers coming at any time of the year. Both the hot and the
cold seasons are accompanied by the same minor phenomena, a fact which deserves to
be noticed, since it tends to lessen the seasonal differentiation, the effects of which will
be spoken of later in this chapter.
It has recently been maintained 2 that Eastern Libya has, within historic times,
been subjected to a marked climatic change, but the evidence thus far brought forward
to sustain this theory is not conclusive. It is indubitable that in many localities the
1 Diodorus Siculus (iii. ,. 4) notices the occurrence of mirages as especially frequent in the Syrtica Regie.
, N I "m' ^ " ndCl l matk C/ ^rs, in BAGS, Sept. .9,0, reviewed in tL Geo g raptical Journal
vol. xxxvi. No. 6 (Dec. 1910), p. 732 so. See also H I r R„,j„ 11 t\j tt ■ &'«/"■'•■"' jiumat,
vol. xxxvii. No. , (Jan. .^ ,), p. zoS so. ^ ' ^^^ ^ *""""*" °» CHmath Oscillations, in GJ,
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 25
population has declined, but this appears to be due to the advent of an ignorant and
shiftless Arab population, rather than to any climatic oscillation. The almost if not
entire absence of recent vegetable remains in places which supporters of the theory of
desiccation maintain to have " gone dry " within the last two thousand years, the
extraordinary preservation of the mud-brick tombs of the Christian necropolis at
Hargah, the presence of cisterns along the Marmaric coast, where there is a heavy
winter rainfall — this and similar evidence suggests that there has been no very great
climatic change in Eastern Libya within recent times. In the Western Sahara, it is
true, such changes seem to have taken place. Without going into the complicated
question of the classical Nigir River, the fact seems to be sufficiently established by the
finding of neolithic camp-sites along the borders of the now waterless Wady Igharghar,
the dry bed of which runs through the West Libyan Desert to the Shott el-Gerid.
This cannot, however, be adduced as evidence for the desiccation of Eastern Libya,
since, as the climate, the geology, and the orography of the Eastern and Western
portions of Libya are now different in many respects, it is but fair to assume that they
were as different anciently as to-day.
The healthfulness of Eastern Libya as a whole is exceptionally good. This is due
to the* dryness, to the fact that only in a few places humanity is crowded together, and
to the intensity of the sunlight, which even in the towns has a deterrent effect upon
infectious disease. Malaria and dysentery are rare, and hardly known outside the fertile
areas. Some of these latter, however, have a bad name, owing to the prevalence of
severe malarial fevers (" apricot fever," " Hargah fever ") at certain times of year ;
many of the nomad Arabs will not enter Siwah in the autumn for fear of this sickness,
which is then rife. Ophthalmia and syphilis are the two most widespread diseases,
the former being extremely common. Plague 1 and cholera have at intervals nearly
depopulated the towns, but, owing to their mode of life, the nomadic population is
protected from these epidemics. Wide, clean spaces, strong sunlight, simple food, hard
physical work, and a climate which, while hot, is dry and bracing, have given to the
greater portion of the modern inhabitants of Eastern Libya the same physique which
excited the admiration of Herodotus. Having described the native practice of cautery,
the Greek historian says that the practitioners themselves aver that " such is the reason
why they are so much more healthy than other men. And indeed," he adds, " the
Libyans are the halest men I know." 2 Of the same tenor are the remarks of Sallust,
who described the Africans as " healthy, swift of foot, and able to endure fatigue.
Most of them," he adds, " die by the gradual decay of age, except such as perish by
the sword, or beasts of prey ; for disease finds but few victims." 3
1 Thucydides (ii. 48) mentions an epidemic of plague in the extreme east of Libya.
2 Herodotus iv. 187. 3 Sallust, Iugurtha, xvii.
2 6 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
VII. Flora : Fauna
Of the Flora and Fauna of Eastern Libya, it is here sufficient to mention only such
plants and animals as chiefly affect the habitability of the country.
The soil of the littoral zone produces most of the fruits and cereals found in Greece
and the Levant, while even far in the interior, 1 the oases are wonderfully fruitful
throughout the whole area. Wheat and barley are cultivated along the littoral ; and the
latter is even found in the oases, where, however, the more usual grain is that of the dura.
Lentils, peas, and beans of several varieties grow readily in all the fertile districts,
as do also leeks, onions, and a small sort of the tomato. Numerous less important
plants have also been found useful for food. Such, for example, are the leguminous
harm, 2 the /eft, 3 which has an edible root, and the 'agulf of which the root is prepared
as food by men, while its spinous leaves afford forage for camels and asses. Numerous
varieties of gourds and melons are cultivated in all the fertile districts, and grapes are
found not only cultivated, but wild. Lemons, figs, and oranges do not thrive, except
in the northern oases and along the coast, though the prune, the apricot, and — more
especially — the pomegranate are found in almost all the oases of the interior. Among
the fructiferous trees which may be mentioned as especially belonging to this region —
at least in its northwestern districts — should be noted the Zizyphus lotus (L.), the
slightly acidulous fruit of which has by some enthusiasts been identified with the
Homeric lotus. Another candidate for this distinction is the fruit of the ghardek, 5
which is small, pleasantly insipid, and which has a slightly stimulating effect. The
olive is well suited to the climate of Eastern Libya, the trees now cultivated in the oases
being, though of straggling growth, conspicuously good ones, and the old Greek trees
in Cyrenaica having maintained themselves till the present practically without cultivation.
The most important of all Libyan vegetable products is the date-palm. 6 Its r61e
in desert Flora is comparable to that of the camel in the animal kingdom, and like
the camel, the date is of foreign origin, though now cultivated throughout the length
and breadth of North Africa. A volume might be written on the uses of this
extraordinary tree. Its fruit is eaten fresh, or dried, or cooked, or brayed ; an intoxicant
is made by fermenting the fruit, or from fermenting the sap of the tree itself; its
leaves serve for fuel, thatching, camel forage, parts of camel-saddles, or, when the tender
" head " is taken and boiled, for human consumption. The naturally reticulated fibre,
which at first envelops the leaf, is used for stuffing pack-saddles, or for weaving good
rope. The bark strippings serve as fuel, the logs, split lengthwise, as rafters or planks.
1 For more detailed botanical notices for Eastern Libya, the reader is referred to H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 147 sqq.,
for the west ; to G. Hildebrand, op. cit. p. 240 sqq. ; A. Rainaud, Quid de natura Pentapolis monumenta . . . nobis
tradiderint, passim ; D. Viviani, Florae Libycae specimen . . . ; E. Cosson, Descriptio plantarum novarum in Cyrenaica a G.
Rohlfs detectarum, p. 80 sqq. ; ibid. Plantae in Cyrenaica . . . notae, p. 45 sqq., for the north ; J. G. Wilkinson, Manners and
Customs of the Ancient Egyptians, vol. ii. p. 398 sqq. ; F. Woenig, Die Pflanxen im alien Agypten, for the east.
2 Diplotaxis duveyrierana. The D. pendula and Eruca sativa are also called harra, and are both used for food.
3 Brassica napus. * Alhagi maurorum. 5 Ni trar i a tridentata (Desf.).
6 Phoenix dactylifera (L.) ; cf. G. Maspero, Dawn of Civilization, p. 27.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 27
These are but some of the services rendered by the palm, but they are sufficient to
show its importance. When it is added that a tree demands comparatively little care,
bears after its fifth year, and, when mature, yields 200 to 300 lbs. of nourishing food
which is excellently suitable for desert travel, the reader will realize the great difference
its introduction and dissemination must have brought about in the economic condition
of Africa.
Thus far, only that part of the flora has been glanced at which affords man his
food. Before passing on to the question of timber, it should be remarked that many
non-edible vegetables in Eastern Libya, a country wherein everything with valuable
properties, either real or supposed, is sure to be used, are employed chemically or
medicinally. Thus, the bark of the gedari shrub, 1 and the fruit of the tamarisk, 2 are
used in tanning leather ; halfa 3 and esparto, 4 tough grasses, are used for making mats
and ropes, both of fair quality ; 5 while many insignificant herbs serve the nomads for
simples, 6 or savouries. 7
The trees useful for timber in Eastern Libya are found chiefly in the north. It is
a question of great interest but, at the present date, not to be solved, if the trees
suitable for shipbuilding and the construction of houses were anciently to be found
much farther south. It seems probable that the local desiccation of some places, as
parts of the Syrtica Regio, for example, may be due to ancient deforestation ; and the
habitability of a very considerable area may have been affected by reckless timbering in
ancient times. In the south, the palm is the wood chiefly used for planks and beams.
Thus, even at Siwah, doors are made of palm-planks, houses are timbered with halved
palm-logs, and graves are in some cases covered with quartered ones.
In the same oasis, the helves of mattocks and of bill-hooks are made from
pomegranate branches or, more rarely, olive. Yet in some northern parts of Eastern
Libya, good timber is to be found even plentifully. In Cyrenaica the cypress 8 occurs,
as do also two varieties of pine, 9 and, frequently, the Levantine juniper. 10 Some of the
wadys in the Gebel el-Ahdar and the Gebel el-'Akabah have, from the thickness of
the dark ranks of conifers standing along their sides, an aspect perfectly European. The
sycamore, tamarisk, and carob occur, especially in the west, while the mimosa and acacia
are more evenly distributed. All these trees yield wood suitable to a greater or less
degree for building purposes, but only in a few localities are the trees found in enough
numbers to make good timbering country.
Except, possibly, in extent of forestation, there is no reason to suppose that the
Flora of Eastern Libya at the present day seriously differs from that of ancient historic
times. The palm was undoubtedly introduced at a very early period, and the vine and
1 Rhus dioica (Willd.). 2 Tamarix articulata, T. gallic a, T. pauciovulata, T. laxiflora..
3 Macrochloa tenacissima. i Lygeum spartum.
5 It is chiefly for making paper that they are exported.
6 E.g. Lebbin {Euphorbia paralias, L.), used against snake-bites.
7 E.g. Kaykut (Erytkrostictus punctatus, Schlecht.), which is put in " kuskus."
* Cupressus sempervirens. 9 Finns hakpensis, P. pinea ? 10 Jumperus phoenicea.
28 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
olive both flourished in the littoral zone in the days of Herodotus. But one interesting
plant, the most famous in all the Flora Libyca, has become extinct— none of the
numerous attempts which have been made to show that this or that modern plant
represents the ancient silphium (o-fafaov) has been convincing. 1 This remarkable plant,
which from its representations upon the Cyrenaic coins is known to have been a variety
of umbellifer, deserves mention here for its historical importance and former economic
consequence. Its ancient habitat lay in the barren steppe country south of the Cyrenaic
plateau, from the vicinity of the Gulf of Bombah to that of Bueb Bay. It had a
variety of uses : the stalks were valuable forage for cattle ; it was introduced into food
as a savouring ; and from incisions made in its stalks was obtained the highly prized
juice (otto? a-L\<f>Lov, laserpitium), by trading in which the Battiad kings of Cyrene attained
to their great wealth. 2 Although both artificially cultivated, and existing naturally, it
has now disappeared.
The Fauna of Eastern Libya numbers among the domesticated animals at the
present day the camel, horse, ox, ass, sheep, goat, and dog. In communities composed
of an Arab or Arabized population, the pigeon and cock are also found, though among
the Berbers of East Libya neither these nor any other birds are eaten. Of the animals
named above, the camel, as has been said, is not native to Africa. Of Asiatic origin,
it is not found depicted on the Egyptian monuments before the Saitic period, and did
not become common in Africa until the time of the Persian ascendancy in Egypt. 3
Once introduced, however, it rapidly usurped throughout all North Africa the place
of the other animals used for desert travel. The horse is also of Asian origin, but found
its way into Africa before the camel, suddenly appearing in Egypt at the beginning of
the New Empire, 4 and finding its way to Crete, before this time, in the Early
Minoan period. 5 The ox, though now rare in Eastern Libya, was nevertheless known
anciently, as is shown by the representations of four of these animals at the plough, in
the tomb of Pe-tut at Siwah. 6
1 The following may be noted as the chief publications on this subject : J. P. Thrige, Res Cyrenensium, p. 304 sqq.,
where the classical notices have been collected ; R. M. Smith and E. A. Porcher, History of the Discoveries at Cyrene,
p. 87 sqq. ; S. Martin, Aufsatz liter das Silphium; idem, Note sur la pretendue Silphium Cyrenaicum in the Bull. Gener.
Therapeut. Medic. Chirurgic. vol. xci. p. 23 sqq.; ibid., J propos du sylphium, p. 222 sq. ; P. Ascherson, Drias e Sylphium ;
G. Rohlfs, Das Silphium ; A. Rainaud, op. cit. p. 118 sqq.
2 It is possible that, as early as Minoan times, silphium formed an article of export from Libya to Crete. A. J.
Evans, Scripta Minoa, vol. i. p. 215 sq.
3 The camel (C. dromedarius) existed in Africa in quaternary times, but its historic introduction seems, as stated, to
belong to Persian times. For a consideration of this question vide G.-B.-M. Flamand, De V introduction du chameau.
* W. Ridgeway, The Thoroughbred Horse, p. 216 sqq. Ridgeway advocates the Libyan origin of the thoroughbred
riding horse, and in support of his thesis has collected much material. But he has not explained {a) the absence of the
horse in O.E. Egypt ; or (b) why among the Libyans of the invasions horses were so scarce ; or (c) how it happens that
the horse was known in Crete before it appeared in Egypt.
5 A. J. Evans adduced on this point a late Minoan seal-impression in which a horse is seen being carried in a one-
masted vessel. This scene he interpreted as the first importation of the thoroughbred horse from Libya into Crete — a
fourfold assumption for which there is no support. As a matter of fact, a seal of the Early Minoan Period, with a horse
engraved on it, was afterwards noted by C. H. and H. Hawes, Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 43.
6 G. Steindorff, Durch die Libysche^ Wilste zur Amonsoase,p. 100, fig. 75. A short time ago, there were no oxen in
the oasis. They have recently been re-introduced by H.H. the Khedive.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 29
The asses in Eastern Libya are of a very fine breed, and are more in harmony with
their environment than any of the other animals in use, excepting only the camel. Of
the wild animals useful to man for their skins or for food, the addax antelope, mohor
antelope, orix, and moufflon (two varieties) occur, as do also the gazelle and, though but
rarely, the wild ass. 1 Among the smaller quadrupeds may be mentioned the jerboa,
hare, and rabbit. The commonest of the carnivorous animals are the hyena, a small
wolf, jackal, fennec-fox, a variety of pard {Felts jubata), the wild-cat {F. catus), and,
rarely, the panther. If the classical sources are to be believed, the interior of Eastern Libya
shared with the ancient Moghreb a bad name on account of the number and ferocity
of the wild animals it contained. Herodotus gives to a whole district of the interior
the name v Aifivr, QrjpubSr)*;, or " Wild-Beast Libya." 2 Of birds, the ostrich may be
mentioned as the largest and most useful. It has recently become extinct in the littoral
zone, 3 though it once existed as far north as Marmarica, and its plumes, as will later
appear, formed one of the distinctive features of Libyan dress. Bustard are found in
the neighbourhood of the desert hattiahs, while in the summer and autumn the littoral
zone is visited by vast migrations of quail. Wild doves occur in those districts having
cliffs and ravines to shelter them, while water-hens, ducks, and flamingoes are found on
the shotts.
Along the coast the fish are extremely numerous, and in many places sponges,
which are to-day extensively fished for by the Greeks, 4 abound.
Of noxious animals, apart from the carnivorous beasts, snakes exist in all the
habitable areas, and even in the hattiahs. The cobra is rare, but the almost equally
deadly cerastes 1 is in many places so common as to be a menace to grazing animals.
Scorpions of several varieties are found in places not too far removed from damp soil, as
are also centipedes. Poisonous tarantulas of large size live in most of the oases.
Occasionally, flights of locusts ruin the grazing and the oasis- gardens, 5 and cause
damage that is ill-atoned for by the fact that, on these occasions, these insects are eaten
by both men and animals.
1 The wild ass occurred till mediaeval times as far north as near the Egyptian Oases. 2 Herodotus ii. 32.
3 W. H. Browne, Travels in Africa,^. 16. Browne remarked that "near the few springs of water" on the way to
Siwah, " the tracks of the antelope and ostrich are frequently discoverable." G. E. Shelley, Birds of Egypt, p. 3 1 5 sqq., has
collected some evidence on this topic. Citing O. Finsch and G. Hartlaub, Die Vogel Ost-Afrikas, p. 597, Shelley notes
the present extinction of the ostrich on the el-Moghrah plains between Cairo and Suez, where Burckhardt saw these birds
in 1 8 16. Prince Halim Basha testified that he had found freshly disturbed breeding-places of the ostrich a few days'
journey from Cairo. In Pocock's time the ostrich was found in the hilly gebel S.W. of Alexandria ; Sonini often saw
fresh tracks in the desert about Bahariah ; and General Minutoli, on his way from Alexandria to Siwah, observed flocks of
from ten to fifteen. It may be added that fragments of old ostrich-egg shells are found in the vicinity of Hargah Oasis.
An English writer has therefore committed a serious blunder in adducing the southern (Sudanese) habitat of the ostrich as
evidence in support of one of his hypotheses, as has been pointed out (O. Bates, Dr. G . Elliot Smith and the Egyptian
Race).
4 C. W. Furlong, Gateway to the Sahara, p. 120 sqq. A brief popular account of this industry will there be found —
the only redeeming feature in an otherwise worthless book.
5 Julius Obsequens, De prodigiis, 28, and Paulus Orosius v. II, for an account of the devastations caused in Cyrenaica
by locusts anno 125 b.c. Also vide Pliny xi. 29, where the methodical efforts taken by the Cyrenaeans to combat
this pest are mentioned.
3 o THE EASTERN LIBYANS
In conclusion, it may be said that the wild Fauna of Eastern Libya is not, at least
at the present time, a very numerous one either in species or in number. It contains
many animals, which, since they have adapted themselves to their environment by
taking on desert colourings, etc., are of interest to naturalists ; but these wild animals
cannot be said to form a very important factor in the life of the inhabitants, as is the case
in tropical Africa, where the animals are much more numerous, or in Arctic countries,
where the Flora is economically almost negligible.
VIII. Man — Distribution : Numbers : Relations of Man to his
Environment in Eastern Libya
The modern population of Eastern Libya is divisible into two main classes which
may be regarded as cultural rather than racial — the sedentary townsmen and the
nomads.
The towns of Eastern Libya exist as centres of trade or as agricultural villages.
The former are found at junctions of the caravan roads, or in small oases along the lines of
march. The latter exist in the more extensive fertile areas, which in some cases have
also the advantage of being well placed with regard to trade. Centres of the former
class are those such as Murzuk on the great Chad-Tripoli route, at its junction with
roads from Ghat in the west and Wagilah in the east ; Ghat itself, on the road from
Air and the Niger Territories, with Ghadames to the north and Murzuk to the east ;
and Ghadames, with Ghat to the south, Tripoli Town to the N.E., and to the west,
Wargla and Ghardayah. To this category of trade centres must also be added Sohnah,
between Tripoli Town, Wagilah, and Murzuk. Towns that have grown up at the
halting-places along the great desert roads are sometimes of considerable size, as Gatrun
on the Chad— Tripoli route. The agricultural towns are as a rule much smaller than
these harbours of the caravans. They lie chiefly in the Syrtic littoral zone, as
Tatahuin, Misdah, " Bongem " (Bu Negem), Zellah, Abu Naym, etc., or in Cyrenaica,
as Merg, Tukrah, Tolmeytah, etc. The latter pair, were they now practicable ports
as in classical times, could be reckoned with Tripoli Town, Benghazi, or Dernah,
as owing their importance partly to trade and partly to agriculture. This double
source of prosperity is actually enjoyed to some extent by two of the larger oases, for
Wagilah, besides its palm groves, has the good fortune to be placed at the intersection
of the Sudan-Kufra, Benghazi, Murzuk, and Siwah roads, by the last of which one
passes eastward into Egypt ; and Hargah is both rich in itself, and important as a
station on the Darb el-Arba'in. From Hargah it is but a short journey to Esnah in
the east or es-Siut in the north. In general the agricultural towns lie to the north, in
littoral Tunisia and Tripolitana, and in the oases ; the trade towns are scattered about
in a roughly N.-S. direction, west of the Libyan Desert.
To turn from the towns to the habitable portions of the desert, it must first be
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 31
remarked that the nomads are not so independent of the permanent centres as is usually
supposed. Throughout the Sahara, the material and moral existence of the nomads is
only assured by the means of sedentary annexes in the centres, or at the peripheries, of
their districts. 1 Therefore the area to which each tribe is limited almost always
contains, or is within reach of, some permanent settlement. These latter not only
serve as markets for indispensable articles as, for example, all such as are made from
metal, or for dates, but are also the only places at which the nomad comes in contact
with forms of life different from his own. They are the centres from which he derives
most of the simple ideas he possesses, and are the sources of his religious enthusiasms.
It is to the towns that he goes at certain seasons to meet other tribesmen, with whom
he exchanges news, and whom he joins in planning raids, or discussing the rainfall and
grazing. An example of these annual visitations may be seen at Delingat, in the
western Delta, a town to which the Aulad 'All repair in great numbers every autumn.
In the desert the nomad moves freely about within the tribal area, passing from
one grazing ground to another with his camels and goats, in winter " following the rain,"
and in summer temporarily exhausting one hattiah after another.
Occasionally, if far enough removed from European influence, be joins his fellows
on long raids into regions outside the tribal territory. The object of these raids is
generally to obtain slaves or camels, or to plunder the homeward bound caravans from
the south. These latter, if he but feel himself strong enough, he will rob without
compunction, though in his own district he " protects " them for a substantial con-
sideration against similar raids from without.
Of his visits to the towns, of his periodic foregatherings with his fellow tribes-
men, of his camel and goat grazing, and, rarely, of the raids just mentioned, the life of
the nomad is largely made up. 2
The numbers of the present inhabitants of Eastern Libya, counting both
sedentaries and nomads, cannot be stated without great reserve. Nor can one feel at all
sure that, once an approximation has been made, one is provided with anything but a
very rough indication as to the number of the ancient inhabitants ; for the Arab
irruptions of the seventh and eleventh centuries, and the subsequent collapse of the
Libyan predominance in the east, both tend to complicate this problem. It seems,
however, certain that the changes to be reckoned with are all such as would tend to
reduce rather than to increase the number of the population. The Arabs, with their
genius for destruction, finished the work already begun by the nomadic Libyans, when
they captured and sacked the now ruined cities of the sedentary Africans. The old
centres have many of them remained uninhabited, or subsisted as mere hamlets, since
the Moslem invaders clove their disastrous way through the most populous parts of
1 H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 247. Duveyrier does not exaggerate the importance of the towns when
he calls them organes essentiels de la vie int'erieure et des relations exterieures des tribus.
2 No more vivid account of nomadic life, which in its essentials varies little with time or place, can be read than
that of C. M. Doughty, op. cit.
3 2
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
North Africa. Even in cases where a sequestered geographical position has favoured
continuous occupation, one finds evidence of decline in the population, as in the now
abandoned but fertile oasis of Abu 'Ungar, where the sole vestiges of man are the ruined
walls and mounds of debris left by former occupants. 1 In the oasis of Hargah,
evidence is to be seen of the decrease in population in the excellent preservation of the
ancient masonry, which, had the number of the inhabitants increased, would have been
quarried more extensively for building material. When these points are considered,
and with them the questions of deforestation and the consequent encroachments of the
desert sands, the number of the modern inhabitants may be accepted as a minimum
below which, at least during the period of the Graeco-Roman occupation, the ancient
population did not fall. The relation of the modern to the pre-classical total is more
difficult to determine ; but as Graeco-Roman occupation tended to increase the popula-
tion, the number of the East Libyans before the advent of the Greek colonists was probably
nearer the modern figure.
The following approximation of the population of Eastern Libya at the present
time is made without reckoning in the inhabitants of the Fayum ; for it is uncertain
as to whether that district was, during full historic times, in the possession of the
Libyans for any considerable period. Therefore this district may be dismissed with
the remark that its present population is about i47,ooo. 2
Eastern Tunisia (Shott el-Gerid to Tripolitana) 3
Tripolitana, Kufra and N. Fezzan 4
Marmarica 6 .
Siwah and Garah 6
Bahariah 7
Farafrah 8
Dahlah 9
Hargah 10
Kurkur "
150,000
1,000,000
8,000
6,000
6,000
550
1,700
7,850
o
1,180,100
Total
Or, in round numbers, 1,180,000.
If this latter figure be taken to represent approximately the number of the Eastern
Libyans, in the pre-classical period, or rather before the XXVIth Dynasty and the
expansion of Egypt towards the west, it is possible to arrive at the number of fighting
men they could have put in the field. If one-tenth of the total population was capable
of bearing arms — a low percentage among a primitive people — the minimum
fighting total would be 118,000. As it is not to be supposed that the Libyans were
1 It is uncertain of what period. On intelligence (verbal) received from Binbashi L. V. Royle, one of the two
Europeans who have visited this oasis, I incline to believe the ruins to be Coptic.
2 Egyptian Government, Almanac, 191 1, p. n 9 . 147,324 is the number there given for 1907.
3 Estimated on the basis of 10 per square mile.
5 Egyptian Government, op. cit. p. 118, gives Mariut, etc., at 780;.
' J. Ball and H. J. L. Beadnell, Baharia Oasis, p. 42. 8 H . j_ L . B e.dnell, Farafra Oasis, p. 13.
» H. J. L. Beadnell, Dakbla Oasis, p. ,4. 10 j. Ballj Rharga Qm - s> p _ ^
11 J. Ball, Jebel Garra and the Oasis of Kurkur, for this hattlah.
4 A. H. Keane, Africa, vol. i. p. 1 30.
6 After personal observations.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 33
well enough united to draw at one time upon all these forces, they may be better
exhibited according to areas of mobilization, thus : —
Region.
Population.
Fighting Men.
fE. Tunisia
I. The LittoraK Tripolitana
iMarmarica
150,000
1,000,000
8,000
15,000
100,000
800
1,158,000
115,800
II. The Oases -
'Siwah and Garah
Bahariah .
Farafrah
Dahlah
Hargah
6,000
6,000
550
1,700
7,850
600
600
55
170
785
III. Western parts{5; T " nisia ' •
ITnpolitana
rtr -nt u T* f W - Tripolitana (half) .
IV. North-Eastern,,- . v ;
-I Marmanca
ISiwah and Garah
22,100
2,210
150,000
1,000,000
15,000
100,000
1,150,000
115,000
500,000
8,000
5,000
50,000
800
500
513,000
51,30°
From the above tables it is clear that the bulk of the Libyan strength-in-arms lay
in the west ; that the oases must have been always subordinated to the littoral, and that
the Libyan invasions of Egypt must have derived their strength from as far west, at least,
as Cyrenaica. Another point deserves mention : the smallness of the population of the
oases, their fertility, and their position between the Egyptian power on the east and the
chief seats of the Libyans on the west, must have made them, until late Egyptian times,
a cause for contention and hostility between the two peoples.
It remains to speak of the effects of regional environment to which the modern
inhabitants are subjected. As it is by the nomadic part of the population that these
effects of climatic and physiographic factors are most clearly evinced, it need only be said
of the town-dwelling traders or agriculturists, that they exhibit in varying, but lesser
degrees, according to circumstances of race and geographical position, the physical and
temperamental peculiarities of the nomads. Since, moreover, it is with the ancestors
of the modern Berber-speaking indigenes, and not with the invading Arabs, that this
essay deals, the following remarks are applicable to the former ; especially as they have,
for a longer period than the Arabs, been influenced by the nature of the country.
The physique of the nomad Berber clearly shows the effect of his environment.
34 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
As more will be said on this topic in discussing the ethnography of the ancient
inhabitants, a very few brief remarks will here suffice. The typical North African
nomad is tall, spare, and wiry. Like all spearmen he carries himself erect ; he is long-
limbed, and in his movements dignified and grave. He walks with long, slow steps, as
if suiting his pace to the stride of a camel. He is hardened alike to cold and heat,
is nervously strong and indefatigably enduring. He eats and drinks sparely by necessity,
though prone to over-indulgence when an opportunity presents itself. He displays,
despite his present religion, a fondness for intoxicants when he can get them. His
face is either round or oval, with a broad forehead, clean-cut lips, high cheek-bones,
and a firm round chin. If bearded, it is generally but slightly, and with straight,
black hair. Bronzed by sun and wind in early life, he is, even by European standards,
white at birth. The eyes are generally dark and piercing in the younger men, though
sun-glare and ophthalmia almost invariably take the lustre from the eyes of the older
ones. Blue eyes are rare, though not unknown. The women, noticeably smaller
than the men, are often handsome, with a beauty which is European rather than Arab.
Men and women alike have small hands and feet. 2 Like his forefathers in the days of
Herodotus, the modern, indigenous nomad is conspicuously robust, having accom-
modated himself to an environment severe and desolate, but invigorating and healthful.
In his mentality, the Berber-speaking nomad shows even more clearly than in his
physique the effects of his environment. Centralized communal life on a large scale is
an impossibility in most parts of Eastern Libya : the resources of any one locality suffice
usually only for the needs of a few families. The nomads would therefore be by the
nature of the country speedily reduced to a state of mere nihilism, had they not instinctively
preserved themselves from this condition by maintaining their sense of tribal loyalty. The
rights of each nomadic family are respected only because they are upheld by the tribe
of which it forms a part, and which has its own places of resort, and its own rights of
watering and grazing. The nomad has an appreciation of his interest in the tribe, and
his loyalty to it is one which is not easily broken. This sense of tribal community he
extends also to the confederation, by belonging to which the tribe itself is protected
against foreign incursions on a large scale.
Other factors to be considered are the monotony and loneliness of the desert ; the
difficulty of existing in it ; the great distance which often lies between one habitable
point and another ; the absence of marked seasonal changes of climate, and the personal
quality of what, in civilized communities, would be called public opinion.
The monotony of the desert is a thing not easily conceived by those who have not
1 Thus, the Berber-speaking Wagilans, Magabras, and Siwans consume large quantities of lakbi, a mild intoxicant made
from fermented dates or palm-sap. J. Hamilton, H r anderings in North Africa, pp. 189 sqq., 195, et alibi. The
Aghlebite rulers of Kayruan were notoriously hard drinkers. V. Piquet, Les Civilisations de P Afrique du Nord, p. 86.
Intemperance more than once cost the Libyans dear. Thus, the Carthaginian Imilco exterminated a body of them after
they had consumed a quantity of wine, drugged with mandragore, which he had allowed to fall into their hands. Polyaenus,
Strategem. v. 10, 'I/mAkuv . . . et'Sws tZv Aifivwv to 0iA.oivov, ktA. Cf. infra, p. 234, for the loss, from a similar cause, of a
victory by the Nasamones. 2 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 382.
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA
6 J
experienced it. Its effect upon the nomadic peoples is seen chiefly in their extremely
limited range of ideas, their minds not being stimulated by natural suggestion. The
gravity of the Imushagh is almost as proverbial as their bravery, but is largely due to
the fact that their minds are seldom stirred except under the stress of physical excite-
ment. As a converse of this, the nomad, whose mind is so stiffened that he will regard
his first locomotive engine with a dignified stolidity that masks nothing but an inability
to grasp anything beyond the visualized fact, will display intense keenness and anima-
tion when tracking a gazelle. In the former case he passively accepts the presence of
something outside his desert experience, and so a thing for which he cannot conceive
any use : in the latter he is dealing with a matter with which he has been familiar from
his childhood, and in tracking his food he displays a craftiness and skill born of intense
and practised concentration many times before directed in this same channel.
The loneliness of desert life tends to increase the sense of liberty and personal free-
dom to which the nomad is born heir. For days he marches from one hatttah to
another, without perhaps seeing another human being save his own immediate com-
panions. Such as it is, he is master of the land : beyond the reach of government, a
conformist to custom rather than to law, he yet has wit enough to understand the value
of his freedom, and prizes it highly enough to fight for it — one of the few abstract posses-
sions outside his religion for which he will give his life.
Despite the difficulty of his life, the Berber-speaking nomad has, according to his
own code of honour, a regard for property. The Arab is his inferior in this respect,
though living under much the same conditions. The Imushagh mav collect together
and launch themselves across five hundred miles of desert on a desperate camel-raid :
this is war. On the road, they will pass and leave untouched a load of goods jettisoned
against recovers" by some unlucky cameleer : to take the forsaken bales would be dis-
graceful theft. To steal bv trickerv is, among the nomads, naturally a more serious
offence than among a sedentarv people. For the latter are surrounded by many super-
fluous things, the loss of which would be no more than annoying to the owner : the
property of the average nomad, on the other hand, is of such vital sort that to deprive
him of it is tantamount to threatening his existence. Yet to a nomad who starves peren-
nially on milk and dates, the temptations to which he does not often yield are far
greater than those before which the morals of a sedentarv often give way. The verv
severity of his lire has bred in him a rough c:ce ci hcnesty. which izrbids him to
plunder those with whom he lives.
The lonj marches to which the Libyan nomad must be accustomec have the effect
of instilling in him an indifference to distance quite bevona lilt experience 01 sedentarv
peoples. A native of the desert thir_ks little of walking 6 a miles in two cays on a
handful of dried dates, if he is reasonably certain of freeing a puddle or water half-wav
on the road. With equal equanimity, he will race jzz miles with a camel, proriaed
his road does not lead through hostile cc untrv.
36 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
This indifference to long journeys is partly due to a very vague conception of time.
It is always with an effort that a desert people, in reply to the questions of a European,
try to estimate the time required to reach a given point. Almost invariably they
understate it ; but this is usually the result of mere ignorance, and not, as many travellers
have unjustly said, of a deliberate wish to say the pleasing thing at the expense of truth.
A caravaneer who may know every well, hattiah, wady, and mongar along a line of march,
may quite honestly be several hours out in his reckoning each day. This uncertainty
exists even in dealing with years : few tribesmen know their own ages, or, certainly, the
ages of their children over six or seven. These peculiarities are due chiefly to the lack
of incident in desert life, and to the absence of markedly differentiated seasons. The
cold winds of winter cease, and summer comes in at a stride, to be again succeeded by
the winter cold without any season of marked change intervening between the two.
The personal quality of public opinion mentioned above is due to the isolation of
nomadic families. To the simple laws of his family, tribe, and confederacy the nomad
is in most cases forced religiously to adhere. But, whereas, in civilized communities, it
is mass-prejudice that enforces those regulations which make for the public good, with
the nomad it is the opinion of the individuals of his family and acquaintance. Tempera-
mentally nervous and sensitive, the nomad is always susceptible to ridicule and mockery,
and he has the same hesitation to exposing himself to the sharp tongue of an old woman
that a European would have to rendering himself contemptible to a city full of people
with none of whom he was personally acquainted. Nomadic laws, to be effective, cannot
be as complex as those governing a community in which every man is policed by his
neighbour. This explains why public opinion among the East Libyan nomads does not
censure the immorality of women until after marriage, when questions of paternity and
inheritance are involved. The lex talionis obtains in all private quarrels ; but though
opinion is not strong enough to prevail against protracted private feuds, it checks these
indirectly through the remarkable institution of the soff, or extra-tribal brotherhood.
Several of the factors just mentioned combine together to encourage in the North
African nomad that highly-developed personal bravery which, did not the same factors
deprive him of a spirit of discipline and of organization, would make him, even to-day,
a most formidable element in modern African politics ; his lonely life makes him
dependent upon himself and his own skill in arms — not to handle well his gun, lance,
sword, and buckler means, in an encounter with an enemy in the desert, that he will be
killed. He has lived for too many generations in an open country, where cover is
scanty and trails are easily followed, to seek instinctively to hide from an enemy. It is
not long since he spoke contemptuously of firearms as " weapons of treachery " ; x three
thousand years ago his ancestors faced without flinching, for six hours, the deadly rain
of arrows poured into their wild ranks by the well-trained Egyptian archers. 2
To this bravery, it follows as a corollary that the Berber nomad is fairly truthful.
i H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 383. 2 lnfra ^ p _ 2ly>
PHYSIOGRAPHY OF EASTERN LIBYA 37
Even if he seeks to escape the consequences of some act of violence, and be taken by his
pursuers, he may confess his guilt, though the admission cost him his life. 1 Once he
has given his word, the chances are he will fulfil it, cost what it may : the Tripolitan
merchant, who has no love for him, will yet entrust him with money or merchandise to
be delivered to some trader in far-away Bornu.
Like almost all desert peoples the world over, the Berber nomad practises freely,
when occasion presents itself and he has the means of dispensing it, an open-handed
hospitality. The desert guest to-day enjoys the semi-sacred character, and suffers the
same insecurity, as the Homeric traveller. Yet of that treachery which sometimes
stained the annals of his sedentary kinsmen in classical times, as when Bocchus cold-
bloodedly betrayed his son-in-law Jugurtha to the Romans, 2 the Libyan nomad
is sometimes guilty ; he does not hesitate to use treachery toward an enemy, or
towards one whom he considers as such. Hence it is that the Roman talked of
" shifty " or " turncoat " Africans. 3 He is, however, loyal towards his guest ; nor will
he, having harboured him, plunder him at a short distance from his tents, as can
happen among the Arabs.
A conspicuous point of difference between the African and the Arab is also found
in the former's almost European treatment of women. This may be due to the fact
that the matriarchate seems to have been established among the Libyans at an early
period, since other circumstances apparently traceable to that institution exist in
Northern, as in Central, Africa.
The indigenous nomadic women enjoy a degree of freedom unknown among their
Semitic sisters. A girl of the Imushagh refuses or accepts a suitor as she pleases :
she may, before marriage, have a lover without suffering those penalties which,
in most cases, would be visited upon an unmarried Arab woman under the same
circumstances ; and she receives, after marriage, much of that consideration which
among civilized people is paid to the mother of the family. Custom in Eastern
Libya still pays more regard to maternal than to paternal filiation in dealing with
questions of inheritance. 4
While it is unnecessary to accept in all its enthusiastic details the somewhat
rhetorical description of Berber character given by Ibn Haldun, this topic may yet be
concluded with his summary, which, even if it presents only the brighter side of the
picture, has yet its basis in fact. And the reader is reminded that the little-changing con-
ditions of desert life, which have preserved their main aspects for thousands of years, assure
us that neither in character nor physique has the indigenous tribesman had reason greatly
1 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 385.
2 Sallust, Iugurtha, 112 sq .
3 Firmicus Maternus, Mathes. i. 4 : . . . Galli stolidi, leves Graeci, Afri subdoli, avari Syri . . . ; Servius ad Verg.
Aen. iv. 724 : . . . Afros versipelles. But cf. Junioris Philosophi Orbis Descriptio, A § 62, where, speaking of Libya west
of Egypt, the writer remarks : inops est valde et viros paucissimos habet, sed bonos, prudentes, et pios.
4 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 393 sqq. This question of matriarchal survival among the Libyan peoples is one of great
complexity, and is far from being settled. Vide infra, p, 111 sqq.
38 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
to alter since prehistoric times. 1 " The virtues which do honour to man, and which
have become for the Berbers a second nature," says the Arab historian, " are bravery
and readiness in defending guests and dependants ; faithfulness to promises, pacts, and
treaties ; patience in adversity ; staunchness in great afflictions ; gentleness of dis-
position ; indulgence toward the faults of others ; aversion to taking revenge ; kindness
toward the unfortunate ; respect for the old and pious ; eagerness to relieve the
downcast ; industry ; hospitality ; charity ; great-heartedness ; hatred of oppression ;
courage shown against the powers which threaten them . . . there," he concludes, " is
a host of titles for the Berbers . . . — titles inherited from their fathers, and of which
the exhibition in writing ought to serve as an example to the nations of future times." 2
1 T. Mommsen, Romische Geschichte, vol. v. p. 643 : Die civilisierten Fremdherrschaften wechselten ; die Berbern blieben
ivie die Palmen der Qase und der Sand der Wuste. Desert peoples are admittedly among the most conservative in the
world.
2 Ibn Haldun, Kitab el-Ibar, Trans. Mc'G. de Slane, vol. i. p. 199 sq. It should be said that Ibn Haldun is here
speaking more especially of the Atlas tribesmen of the west. In addition, vide H. Duveyrier, of. cit. p. 383 sqq. In
regard to Duveyrier's account of the character of the Imushagh, it must be said that he has deserved the censure which,
for his enthousiasme un peu juvenile pour les vertus touaregs, he has received from E.-F. Gautier, Sahara Algerien, p. 137.
The Imushagh are a fine people ; but they are fine barbarians.
CHAPTER II
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY
The origin, whether European, Asiatic, or African, of the Hamitic race — which, with
the Arabs, now shares that part of Africa which lies north of lat. 10° N. — yet awaits
solution. A host of theories, a few of them plausible, none of them sufficiently
supported, and most of them in direct contradiction to each other, have been launched
as solutions to this problem, and have but rendered it more obscure. At present, and
until a great mass of new and scientifically gathered evidence shall have been collected,
only one main fact is indisputable — viz. that the so-called Hamitic race has absorbed a
number of foreign ethnic elements, 1 which it has not succeeded in wholly assimilating
physically, though it has imposed upon them this or that Hamitic dialect. The
original pure Hamitic type seems to be that found among the Saharan Berbers — a type
tall, spare, long-limbed, and dark {bruit) ; 2 hair black or dark brown, straight or wavy ;
head dolichocephalic, orthognathous ; nose slightly aquiline or straight ; eyes dark and
piercing, set rather widely apart ; mouth well-defined ; facial capillary system slightly
developed ; movements generally slow and dignified. In the west, between the Wady
Dra'ah (" Wed Draa ") and the Senegal, this type has become fused with the Negro
elements from the south, the resultant type sharing the physical peculiarities of both
progenitors. The same thing appears to have happened in the case of the various
Hamitic peoples of East Africa.
The most important extra-African elements among the Hamites are the brachy-
cephalic Berbers and the blonds. Both, as one would a priori expect, are found in the
north. The brachycephals 3 are, almost certainly, invaders, since they form but a small
group near the northern seaboard of the dolichocephalic African continent. The blonds
are much more numerous, but are even more clearly of extra-African origin. Various
theories have been advanced to account for the presence of this xanthochroid element
in Africa, it even having been asserted that the blonds owed their origin to the
1 Cf. H. Weisgerber, Les Blancs d' Afrique, p. 82 et alibi.
2 Cf. Lucan, iv. 678 sq., concolor Indo Maurus ; Nemesian, Cyneget. 261, coloratus Mazax {coloratus here as in
Martial x. 68, 3, coloratis . . . Etruscis] ; H. Schirmer, De nomine populorum qui Berberi vulgo dicuntur, p. 74.
3 For this type, H. Weisgerber, op. cit. p. 53 sqq.
39
4 o THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Vandals. This is, however, not only in itself incredible, owing to the number and
distribution of the xanthochroids in the fastnesses of Morocco, but is even flatly-
contradicted by the ancient evidence. Whatever may be the true significance of the
word Tehenu, which some would have to mean " fair " or " bright " (sell. " people "), 1
evidence of a more satisfactory nature is to be found in the Egyptian monuments. For
whereas the Libyan in earlier Egyptian art is regularly a brun, later representations
exist showing Libyans not only blond, but even with red hair and blue eyes. 2 Classical
notices of blond Africans also exist ; and though they are few, they are explicit. The
Greek colonists of Cyrene are mentioned by Callimachus as dancing with the blond
Libyan women — /^era ^avOrjau At^vo-o-^?. 3 This passage may be compared with that
of the Pharsalia, in which Lucan speaks of the blond Libyan and black Aethiopian
serving-women of Cleopatra : —
Haec Libyces pars tarn flavos gerit altera crines
Ut nullis Caesar Rheni se dicat in arvis
Tarn rutilas vidisse comas ; pars sanguinis usti
Torta caput, refugosque gerens a f route capillos}
The geographer Scylax says that the Libyans about Lake Tritonis are reported to
be fair and finely built. 5 A passage in Pausanias might suggest the presence among the
Libyans of blue or sea-coloured eyes (• • • y\av/cov<; . . . o^daXfiow . . .). 6 The presence of
blond natives in the west is mentioned by Procopius, 7 and from these notices it is clear
that, for nearly a thousand years before the advent of the Vandals, a xanthochroid
element continuously existed in Africa. This blond element was not, probably, to
be found far from the coast, the interior being occupied by the brun Hamitic type,
and, as to-day, by mixed Hamites and negroes in the oases. The presence of the
1 F. Chabas, Etudes sur I'antiquite, p. 1 8 1 ; P. le P. Renouf, Who were the Libyans? p. 602 ; G. H. Brugsch,
Geographie des alten Agyptens, vol. ii. p. 78.
2 This is not, to be sure, always quite conclusive, since paintings do occur in which foreigners are represented with
red eyes, e.g. W. M. Miiller, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. Plates xiv., xvi., xvii. et alibi. But cf. ibid. p. 135, note 2,
where the author has justly observed that while the brun Libyan type is the only one portrayed in the Old Empire, the
xanthochroids predominate in the New Empire representations.
3 Callimachus, Hymni ii. (Apolloni) 85 (it will be remembered that Callimachus was himself a Cyrenean) : —
T H p ex^PV ^f a ^otj3o<s
ocrTe ^wcrrrjpes 'EvvuoCs
avepes (Lpx^cravTO /xera
£avdfj(Ti Ai^vcrcrys.
IWpai eSre <T<j>i,v Kap-
veidSes -ijkvOov T £2pcu.
1 Lucan, Pharsalia, x. 126 sqq.
5 Scylax, Periplus, §110, oStoi yap Tvfavres A[/3ves Xiyovrai £av6oi, airaaToi xal ko. AAmttoi. On this passage vide
C. Mehlis, Die Berber/rage, p. 37, and C. Miiller, ad Scyl. loc. cit. (Geogr. Graec. Min. vol. i. p. 88 col. B).
6 Pausanias i. 14.
' Procopius, De bello Vandalico, ii. 13. Procopius had this information from a native source, it being conveyed to
him by a Moorish chief, " Orthaeas," who told him that beyond (west of) the desert were to be found a people who were
not dark like the Moors, but who were of white countenance and fair-haired — <n'x &o-rrep ol Mavpovcrioi p.eXavoxpooi,
aAAot \evKai re Aiav to. ampara koI ras xopas £avOoi.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 41
last-named element explains how, in Greek argot, black hydrias came to be called
" Libyans." x
That the xanthochroids were Nordic invaders, as was long ago supposed- by Broca 2
and Faidherbe, 3 seems, despite the ingenious theory of Sergi to the contrary, indubitable.
Sergi has advocated the African origin of the xanthochroids, claiming that, because the
mass of them are found in the heights of the Atlas, 4 they are autochthonous indigenes
whose pigmentation was modified by their mountain environment. 5 To sustain this
theory, he cites an interesting piece of evidence from an Italian military anthropo-
metrist, 6 who found in his examination of the recruits that the majority of those who
were blond came from districts that were over 400 metres above sea-level. This, of
course, is not evidence on the African xanthochroids ; for it is not shown that the
Italian blonds are not of Langobardic or of earlier Germanic stock, who, themselves
Nordic invaders, found themselves most at home and survived better in the cooler
mountain districts. And again, if mere altitude could make blonds, these would not
be lacking in either the Rocky Mountains, or the Andes, where every altitude, and all
conditions of climate and latitude, are to be found. As neither they nor the Himalayas
and the Hindu Kush, 7 which reach by stages from hot moist plains to enormous
altitudes ; the Abyssinian highlands, well over a modest 400 metres ; nor the orographic
system about Victoria Nyanza, have yet produced a blond people, it may safely be said
that no more so have either the Apennines or the Atlas. And since this is the case, and
the African xanthochroids are found at the end of a road which was followed in historic
times by another blond Nordic invasion, 8 it is only reasonable to suppose that the xantho-
chroids of the Egyptian monuments and classical notices were invaders in a country
primarily peopled with " autochthonous " blacks and bruns. One may, as did de Quatre-
fages, say truly that the origin of the African blonds is as yet unknown, 9 but it is, for
the reasons just given, safe to say they were immigrants.
The presence of the brachycephalic and of the xanthochroid elements in Africa
naturally suggests that, since among the North Africans generally classed as Hamitic
are a number of sub-types, some of these may have had their origin from yet other
foreign immigrations. This is of course possible, though the differences between the
sub-types are not such as to necessitate such an explanation. The prevalence among the
Hamites of dolichocephaly, for example, and the great similarities of hair and of skin-
colour seem to point to their common indigenous origin, various modifications having
1 Hesychius, in verb. h.ifSva.%' rag /xeAaivas vSptas, em rots ra^ots Ti6>e/xevas. The true home of the Negro, anciently
as to-day, was Central Africa and the Sudan. Cf. Firmicus Maternus, Mathes, i. I . . . omnes in Aethiopia nigri ... and
a host of other notices. * P. Broca, Les Peuples blonds et les monuments megalithiques.
3 L. L. C. Faidherbe, Instructions sur I' anthropologic de I'Algerie, in the Bull. Soc. Anthr., Paris, 2nd series, viii.,
1873, p. 603 sq.
4 C. Tissot, Sur les monuments megalithiques et les populations blondes du Maroc. But, as the classical notices above
cited show, they were distributed littorally, no matter where the bulk of the blond population was to be found.
5 G. Sergi, The Mediterranean Race, p. 72 sqq. 6 R. Livi, Antropometria militare, pt. i. p. 65 sqq.
7 The one possible exception may be the Yeshkhuns of Dardistan, who have been reported to have red hair, etc.
8 I.e. the Vandals. 9 De Quatrefages, Histoire generale des races humaines, p. 486.
G
42 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
taken place owing to fusion with the negritians of the Sudan, or with the xanthochroids
and brachycephals of the north. Such a modification is now well established in the
case of the Trarza Moors, a people at first sight very different in aspect from the
Saharan Berbers who are known to be the result of a fusion between the latter and
the Negroes of Senegambia. 1 Other evidence, of a linguistic nature, exists to prove that
an ethnic sub-stratum of " autochthones " of a single race existed in North Africa. From
the Mediterranean to the Sudan, and from the Atlantic to the Red Sea, dialects of the
Hamitic family are yet to be found. In many places they have given place to Arabic,
or, as in Abyssinia, to other Semitic tongues, but everywhere the linguistic survivals
testify to the former prevalence of Hamitic. Among the western Hamites, again, can
be found evidence of their having once been called by a common ethnic name. 2 This
name may be radically represented as MZ<= or MZGH, 3 and has at present the force of
'■'■noble " or "free" 4 (sell, "people "). It is seen as i-MuSaGH among the Berbers west
of Fezzan ; in the Air district as i-MaGiGH-en ; 5 a feminine form is applied by the
Auwelimiden of Adrar to their dialect, which they call ta-MaSeGH-t ; 6 the Berbers of
the Maroccan Rif, Atlas, and South Atlas slopes call themselves i-MaZiGH-en, 7 while
those of the Aures Mountains use the forms i-MaZiGH-en, i-MaZiR-en. 8 The
same generic appears in classical times as MaZiC-es, 9 MaZaC-es or MaZaG-es, 10
MaZY-es, 11 or MaXY-es, 12 and is also seen in the Libyan inscriptions forming personal
names. 13 It is not therefore surprising that the Berbers of mediaeval times should have
thought themselves descended from a mythical eponymous ancestor named MaZiGH, 14
and the wide dissemination of the name as an ethnic, and its long employment, 15 is
1 Collignon and Deniker, Les Maures du Senegal; H. Weisgerber, op. cit. p. 181.
2 It has been thought that such a name was to be seen in the word Berber, and until recently I personally
inclined to this view, which I abandoned on reading Schirmer's brilliant study on this question. H. Schirmer, op. cit.
The use of Berber as a generic name for the Hamites was supported by C. Tissot, Geographie comparee, vol. i. p. 395 ; V.
de Saint-Martin, Le Nord de P Afrique dam I'antiquite, p. 208. Against these, vide H. Schirmer, op. cit., passim, and
especially p. 26 sqq.
3 Modified variously, but always in accordance with the equivalences noted infra, p. 75 sq.
4 Leo Africanus, Africae descriptio, p. 18. The native African language is there called Aquel Amarig, hoc est lingua
nobilis. The real reading should be Kel Amazigh = " tribe" or "race of the Amazigh," the name, not of the language,
but of the Berbers themselves. Vide R. Brown, Description of Africa . . by . . Leo Africanus, vol. i. pp. 133, and
208, note 28. 5 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 317. e Bissuel, Les Touareg de I'Ouest, p. 36.
7 C. de Foucauld, Reconnaissance au Maroc, p. 10. 8 Cf. E. Masqueray, Le Djebel Chechar, p. 260.
9 Ptolemy iv. 2. § 5, Maft/ces; Aethicus, Cosmographia, p. 88, . . . gentes Mazices multas . . . ; cf. Evagrius, Hist. Eccles.
i. 7, p. 244.0 ; Nicephorus Callistus, Eccles. Hist. xiv. 36, p. 1 1 80 ; Philostorgius, Hist. Eccles. xi. 8, p. 603 ; Anonymus,
Expositio totius mundi, p. 123 ; OIL, viii. 2786 ; Ammianus Marcellinus xxix. 5 § 17.
10 Claudian, Laus Stilichonis, i. 357 ; Lucan iv. 681 ; and, doubtfully, Suetonius, Nero, 30.
11 Hecataeus ap. Steph. Byz. in verb. Mafves.
12 Herodotus iv. 191. Cf. the MaXY-tani of Justin xviii. 6. A form with X as the medial sibilant may perhaps be
seen in the place-name Maxula, Ma£ouAct, in Ptolemy iv. 3 § 7 (cf. ibid. iv. 3 § 34, M. IlaAata) = Maxula, Pliny v. 4 ; cf.
Victor Vitensis, Historia persecutionis, i. 5 § 6.
13 E.g. MaSiK, MaSiR, MaSaK, etc. Halevy, itudes berberes, i. pp. 75, 118, 151, 154, 158, 161, 179 ; L. L. C.
Faidherbe, Inscriptions numid. p. 14 etc. 14 Ibn Haldun, Kitab el-Ibar, Translat. de Slane, i. p. 184.
15 For its existence in Egyptian times, vide infra, p. 46 sq. I suggest with great reserve that the name of the
" Mazoi " Aethiopians, of which the hieroglyphic form was J|^i | "|\ (j(j ) ^ , Copt. UUSOTOI, may be one more
of these Hamitic MZGH names, and that the name of the Hamitic-Negro Masai also may be a survival of it.
PLATE I.
LIBYAN TYPES FROM THE EGYPTIAN MONUMENTS.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY
43
strong testimony of the underlying racial unity of the Berber-speaking peoples through-
out North Alrica. The name MZGH was undoubtedly employed as a generic term
by the ancestors of the modern Imushagh and their various branches, and it is they
who must be considered as the modern representatives of the old Hamitic stock which
was invaded by the brachycephals and xanthochroids, and which in some cases has been
modified so as to take on a negroid form.
In regard to this last point, the Egyptian monuments show that there already
existed negroid Libyans by New Empire times. The pure western Hamitic type is seen
in Plates I., II., and X., and is characterized by having an ortho-
gnathous profile, straight or slightly aquiline nose, and pilous system
moderately developed. The eye is often represented as different a ' b
from that of the Egyptians, the upper lid being longer than the Fic " '■
lower, and having almost what classical archaeologists would term a " Scopadean roll "
(cf. Fig. i, a, Egyptian, 1 and b, Libyan). This peculiarity often exists to-day among the
Berbers, as seen in Fig. 2, ti, b (modern
, Kabyle ; cf. c, 1/, modern Egyptian).
The bodies are spare, well-knit, and
long-limbed. Types of negroid Lib-
yans are shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The
degree of negrism is not high, but it
is clearly marked by the platyrhinism and thick lips ; the example shown might well
be compared with the " Garamantic Type" of Duveyrier.- The fusion which pro-
b
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Fig.
duced this type probably took place in Nubia or in the Southern Egyptian Oases, as it
will, before the conclusion of this chapter, be pointed out that the Temehu probably
1 In Fig 1, a, the Mi-stripe (collyrium) exaggerates the length of the eye.
2 H. Duveyrier, op.' cit. p. zSS s f ., pis. xvi., xvii. The " Gerid type" of Collignon does not appear to be a
fixed result of Negro admixture. H. Weisgerber, of. cit. p. 57.
44
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
occupied both these districts. 1 The intrusive xanthochroids are represented
monuments, as already mentioned, but do not appear before the Xllth Dynasty.
The repartition of the Hamitic race in modern times is displayed in Map I
great divisions, there noted by Roman numerals enclosed in circles, are as follows
I. Guanches of Canaria. — Extinct or fused with Europeans in recent historic times.
II. Atlantic Hamites. — More or less fused with Negro stocks, as in the case of the
Berbers and the Trarza Moors. In the north (Marocco) containing a marked xanthochroid
of foreign (Nordic) origin. 2
III. Mediterranean Hamites.— Eused with various foreign elements— Nordic blond, brachy-
cephalic brun, and (which applies also to II.) Semitic Arab.
on the
The
Haratin
element
IV. Saharan Hamites. — Slight Negro and Arab admixture, but purer and more typical than
any other Hamitic people of the present time.
V. Peulhs. — A mixed race, containing Berber and Negro elements, and a Semitic infusion
acquired in East Africa, their original home ; also a later Semitic strain due to contact with the Arabs.
1 In this connection it is perhaps worth while to call attention to two passages in which the Libyan type is confused
with the Aethiopic. Careful classical writers are explicit in distinguishing between the Berber and Negro types, but
Adamantius (Physiognom. ii. 23) confuses them, . 01 jilv Aifivts AWIoxfiv o/j.oioi. Cf. Polemon, Physiognom. i. 3, . . .
aA/V ol jiiv Aifives, AWioifiv li/uiiot. . It is barely possible that a vague knowledge of the existence of negroid Libyans
led to this confusion.
- Cf. the position, laid down on the authority of Ptolemy, of the " Leucaethiopes " and " Melanogaetuli " on Map I.
These descriptives are good evidence of the ancient opposition of whites and blacks in the Sahara, and of their fusion. Cf.
Orosius i. 2 § 88 . . gentes Libyoaethiopum . .
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 45
VI. TiMus.—Dark Hamites (?) showing several puzzling ethnic peculiarities, but probably a
fusion of IV. and Sudanese negroes.
VII. Egyptians.— A race mixed since very early times, having strains of IV., Nilotic Negroes,
and Semites.
VIII. Nubas. — A people resembling VI., but, perhaps, with a greater degree of negrism.
IX. Begas.—A fusion of IV., VIII., and Semitic stocks.
X. Abyssinians. — The same, with Negro admixture.
XI. Danakih. — The same, with higher percentage of Semite.
XII. Somalis. — The same, with higher percentage of Negro.
XIII. Gallas. — The same, with small Semite admixture.
XIV. Masai. — A strongly negroid stock, perhaps containing a slight Hamitic, and an old
Semitic strain — the ethnology of this people is doubtful. 1
These fourteen groups may be thus subdivided : —
1. Western or Libyan Hamites.
Guanches.
Atlantic Hamites.
Mediterranean Hamites.
Saharan Hamites.
Tibbus (?).
2. North-Eastern or Semito-Hamites.
Egyptians.
Begas.
Danakils.
3. Eastern or Aethiopian Hamites (Kushito-Hamites).
Abyssinians.
Somalis.
Gallas.
Nubas.
4. Mixed Southern Hamites.
Masai (?).
Peulhs.
It is with a portion of the Western Hamites that this essay deals. In antiquity,
naturally, it was the Mediterranean Hamites who, owing to their geographical position,
were best known to the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans ; and whereas the western
branch of this division of the Hamitic race assumed an importance in later times, it
is the less known, but by no means insignificant, eastern portion that is here considered.
The Eastern Mediterranean Hamites — more conveniently, the Eastern Libyans —
of the Egyptian period were known to the inhabitants of the Nile Valley under a
variety of names. These names were in some cases those of tribes, in others they were
those of regional groups of tribes. It is, unfortunately, on the given data, not always
possible to distinguish between the tribes and the regional groups, but a provisional
division has been made in the following list : —
1 On the name, vide supra, p. 42, n. 15.
46 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Groups Tribes
Tehenu. Imukehek (?).
Temehu. Kehek.
Rebu. Keykesh.
Meshwesh. Seped.
Esbet.
Ekbet.
Shai.
Hes.
Beken.
The grounds on which the above division has been made are noted below.
Groups
Tehenu H *"T 1 "&S, T h n w. (The country, 31 | ^ Q^Hl T h n w). 1 Variants,
*=> § 9? 1 T h n w, 2 etc. Both the ethnic and the geographical names were employed by the Egyptians
until the time of the great invasions in a very loose manner to designate the people and the habitable
countries to the west of the Nile Valley, north of the Negro zone. Therefore the Tehenu are
mentioned in a general way, together with other foreign nations, as with Nubians and Asiatics, 3 or
in antithesis to " the four eastern countries." 4 They appear as the typical people of the west, 5 and the
extent of their territories and the number of their divisions are attested by the frequency of such
phrases as " the countries {plur.) of the Tehenu," 6 " the chiefs (plur.) of Tehenu." 7
Temehu S^ \\ i, T m h w. 8 Variants (the country, | t\ 8 ) r^a T m h) ; s=> t\ jM
^ T m h, etc. The Temehu appear to have been a more clearly denned branch of the Tehenu. 9
That they were themselves made up of more than one tribe is clear from the extent of their
territories. That the Temehu appeared to the Egyptians to have been a well-defined group is shown
by their being listed with such ethnic groups as the Irtet, Mazoi, Yam, Wawat, and Kau Negroes
of the south, 10 etc.
Rebu Jivl ^ R'bw = At/Sue?. 11 This group, seated in the north, comprised a number
of tribes, just as in classical times. This is borne out by the fact that the Rebu we're so extensive a
people that their importance led the Greeks into bestowing the generic term Libyans upon the
indigenous North Africans as a whole. The Egyptian records, moreover, speak of the Rebu as of
a powerful people at the time of the invasions. Furthermore, the name survives in Marmarica at
the present time — Hatfiah el-Lebuk (3 hours south of Siwah) ; Mongar Lebuk (long. 29° E.,
lat. 30° N. ; k = u = w). The Imukehek may have been a tribe of the Rebu, since they dwelt
in the north, 12 and since the tribe called the Kehek was associated with the Libyans at the time of
the invasions. 13 The Esbet also, for the reasons given below, may have been a tribe of the Rebu.
Meshwesh. £== " £iK[*^. -f) liskSM j^l ^ , M s w s. 14 The Meshwesh were a great and
1 H. Brugsch, Geographie d. altens Agyptens, vol. ii. p. 78, and PI. xxii. 235. Cf. ibid. PI. Ixxxviii. 232.
2 A. Erman, Agyptisches Glossar, p. T48. 3 BAR i. § 4.23 H.
4 BAR i. § 675. 5 BAR ii. § 892, and, plagiarized therefrom, iii. § 1 16, iv. § 37 et alibi.
6 BAR ii. § 413, iii. § 464. 7 BAR iii. § 132. 8 H. Brugsch, op. cit. p. 79 and PI. xxii. 240.
9 Ibid. p. 79. The Temehu do occasionally appear to have been named in the general sense of "Westerners," e.g.
BAR iv. § 42 . . . Rameses III. " protecting against Temeh," etc. ; cf. iv. §§ 43, 49, 58 et alibi.
10 BAR i. § 311. n H. Brugsch, op. cit. p. 79, and PI. xxii. 241-, 242, 243.
12 BAR ii. § 42. 13 BAR iii. § 588 et alibi. « H. Brugsch, op. cit. p. 80, PI. xxii. 244.
PLATE II.
8
9
LIBYAN TYPES FROM THE EGYPTIAN MONUMENTS.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 47
powerful group of allied tribes, who were able to overpower their eastern neighbours, and even event-
ually to obtain the Egyptian throne. 1 It is unreasonable to suppose that they were merely a single
tribe, since their numbers and force point to a different conclusion. The name Meshwesh is but
one form of the generic Berber appellative which has already been noticed above : MSU- being the
equivalent of M Z G H, as seen most clearly in such classical forms as MaXY-es, MaZY-es. 2 This
does not necessarily mean that the Meshwesh were in very fact the ancestors of the Herodotean
Maxyes, though such a statement is probable enough, and has recently been repeated by a scholar
of high standing. 3 Rather, the identification means merely that the Meshwesh were of those who
used the generic Hamitic designation which has been already noted as made on the radical jMZfr.
Tribes
Imukehek. ^"^ Q Q Q ^ra^ ] , ^ ,- The Imukehek appear but once in the Egyptian annals
(XVIIIth Dynasty), but as they were a northern people, 4 and the Kehek were Rebu, they were
probably themselves a small Libyan tribe.
Kehek. a[\] A\ 3 1 . The Kehek appear to have been a fairly numerous tribe, since they
supplied the Egyptians with mercenaries. 5 They do not, however, appear as independent adversaries
of Egypt, but as allies of the more powerful Rebu, 6 of whom they may be considered to have
formed an important part.
Keykesh. ^ ¥^ 00 ^"isk, T^T jj^ | ^ ,- This name is that either of a small tribe or is a mis-
spelling of Kehek. 7 It is found in the list of Rebu and Meshwesh forces defeated by Rameses III. 8
Esbet. 5 1 ^=& ss^ 1 °2r • A small tribe, only once mentioned. The name at once recalls that
of the Asbystae, who are found in Pliny as the Hasbitae, and in Ptolemy as the 'AafivTai. or 'AafirjTat,. 9
These lections might be due to the error of a copyist ; but the occurrence of the second % in a%Bv%Tai
itself may be due to the change of one lingual mute before another (as 'dare = iS-re), the original form
of the name having been made on the radical consonants S-B-T-T. With this form S-B-T-T
is to be compared the name Seped, S-P-D, a tribe once mentioned in the records. 10
Ekbet. ^v^l)\|i- A tribe but once mentioned in the records. 11 Possibly a misspelling of Esbet.
Shai (perhaps Shaitep ?). JM, "%\ M ® ) ^ • The Shai appear but once, 12 in conjunction with
the Esbet, Keykesh, Hes, and the Beken, in the invasion of the Meshwesh and Rebu, defeated by
Rameses III.
Hes. iTl'^'aO ^ • Mentioned once, 13 with the Shai, etc. Cf. the Ha, Hassak, a modern
Arabo-Berber tribe of Cyrenaica. 14
Beken. "^ ' "%\ ^ 1 V& j- Mentioned once, 15 with the Shai, etc. This name may possibly
1 Vide infra, p. 228.
2 For the change of £ to H or U, vide infra, p. 75 ; and cf. the equivalences of Garth- =Hort-; Guillaume =
William, etc.
3 J H. Breasted, History, p. 466. Previously, Petrie had, upon this identification, built a fabric which is only
paralleled by his identification's of Syrian place-names. W. M. F. Petrie, History, vol. iii. p. 1 1 1 sqq., and fig. 43,
"Map of Tribes," etc. (The Syrian names are to be found, vol. ii. p. 3 2 5 -W-)
4 BAR ii § 42 5 J- H - Breasted > °P- cit - P- 477 ; BAR lv - § + 10 -
e BAR iii § 588 T BAR »'■ §§ 4°2. 4°5- 8 BAR iv - § 4°5-
9 Pliny v 5 • Ptolemy iv 4 § 6. 10 BAR iv. § 91. Possibly again, iv. § 40, and note d ad loc. at.
» BAR ii §'70 12 BAR iv. § +05. 1S BAR loc. cit.
" G Haimann, Cirenaica, general map. This identification is made with the greatest reserve, for (a) the classical
link is lacking, and (*) the Hassah may have come into Cyrenaica with the Soleym-Ben-Mansur m the eleventh century.
Cf. E. Mercier, Histoire de t ' etablissement des Arabes, etc., p. 148. ° BAR loc. cit.
48 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
be represented by the Greek ethnic BaKaAe?, 1 since L and N are dialectic equivalents in Berber that
might warrant the identification of BeKeN with BaKaA-e?.
The brief list of Libyan ethnic names to be found in the Egyptian texts being
concluded, the question now arises : How were the owners of these names distributed
geographically ? The question can be answered only in the most general manner, and
in the map (Map II.) illustrating the ethnogeography of the Libyans during the
Egyptian period, the reader is asked to consider that the positions assigned to such
ethnic groups as are given a place on the map at all are only approximative.
The whole of Africa west of the Nile was, to the Egyptian, a terra incognita which
stretched away from the familiar haunts of men to the realms of the dead. 2 To this
unknown country the vague general term ft ^. imn-t, " the West," was applied,
either to signify the country itself, or the imagined soul-land that lay in or beyond it.
Within it, as the Nile dwellers came eventually to know, lay the oases, and various
tribes of foreign men. These men they designated by such terms as Hestyw, " bar-
barians," 3 or by ethno-descriptives like Tehenu, picked up from, or first applied to, near
neighbours, and then gradually given a general significance. These " barbarians " in
early historic times occupied not only the oases but also the Fayum, for by the position
of the Libyan scenes in the Sa-hu-re temple, it is clear that the Libyans held country to
the south of Memphis until the Vth dynasty. 4 And since the oases were not subjected by
the Egyptians until the time of the New Empire, and were probably unconsidered 5 in
the days of Sa-hu-re, the orientation of the Libyan reliefs in his temple must refer to
the Libyan occupation of the Fayum.
The Libyans also held some stretches along the west bank of the Nile itself, above
the First Cataract. The archaeological evidence on this point is reserved for treatment
in an" Appendix (I.) to this essay, but part of the textual evidence may be introduced
here. Among the many offerings made by Rameses III. to the temples, we read in the
Papyrus Harris of his having given two " Tymhy stones of Wawat," each weighing
1 Herodotus iv. 171, var. Kdj3aXes. 2 A. Erman, Handbook of Egyptian Religion, p. 87.
8 BAR iv. § 106 ; cf. Herodotus ii. 158. Otherwise the Libyans were grouped with the Nine Bows or the Haunebu.
BAR passim.
4 L. Borchardt, Das Grabdenkmal des Konigs Sctjiu-Re*, vol. i. p. 17 sq.
5 Itendidi, as early as the Xllth Dynasty, visited " the land of the oasis dwellers,' - BAR i. § 5Z7. From the Puemre
inscription it is clear that' the oases were under foreign chiefs, who sent their tribute to Egypt, BAR ii. §8 385, 386.
Later, in the X Vlllth Dynasty, we hear of a chief of " all the oasis country," BAR ii. §§ 763, 767. This title may have
been an honorary one, for the "tribute" taken from Tehenu by Hatshepsut was almost certainly, by its nature
exacted from the oasis dwellers, BAR ii. § 321. Under Rameses III. the oases were permanently colonized by the
Egyptians, and planted with vineyards, BAR iv. § 213. The Mannier stela informs us that, as at present, the Oasis of
Hargah was used as a place of banishment, BAR iv. § 650 sqq. Even in late times the inhabitants of Dahlah were Liby-
Egyptians, BAR iv. § 725 ; cf. Ptolemy, Geogr. iv. 5 § 12 ; and to this day Siwan Berber is spoken at Manshiah el-
'Aguzah in Bahariah. The oases were, in later times, thus named : Hargah = »«« Kenmet or ^ 1 ^^ ^L '
*= V^-r\ ' q || © »f V
Ut-res, " Oasis of the South ; " Dahlah = "^ "^ ^^^ ^ °, Desdeset ; Farafrah, perhaps = ■=! (j 8 f! Ta-ihet ;
Siwah, doubtfully = Jflfl ° ° Q $1f Qfl ©' Se &- imit > "Fields of Palm Trees." Cf. I. Dtlmichen, Die Oasen der
Libyschen Wilste ; G. Parthey, Der Orakel und die Oase des Amnion.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 49
3 kidet. 1 The Wawat were a negro or negroid people 2 well to the south, but not
probably much above the Second Cataract. 3 The name " Timhy stone " at once suggests,
as it did long ago to Brugsch, 4 Temehu. The stones would naturally be called
Temehu stones if purveyed to the Egyptians by the people of that name, just as
Carchedonian stones were so called because, though found in the interior of Libya,
they reached the Greeks through the medium of the Carthaginians. And that the
Temehu were in reality the northern neighbours of the Wawat is clear from the
Harkhuf inscription (Vlth Dynasty). Harkhuf, going for the third time on a trading
journey into the Sudan, encountered " the chief of Yam going to the land of Temeh,
to smite Temeh as far as the western corner of Heaven. I went after him," adds
Harkhuf, "and I pacified him." 5 Since the Yam were close neighbours of the Wawat,
and it is not probable that the negro chief designed to attack the Temehu in the distant
Egyptian oases, it is plain that his enemies were either in Kurkur or Selimah — both so
small as to be very unlikely objectives for such an expedition — or else on the Nile.
If it be supposed that from Beris, the southernmost of the Egyptian oases, the Libyans
followed the S.S.E. depression which leads thence to the Nile about Derr, and that,
when they arrived at the river, and found no such strong opposition as they would have
encountered below the First Cataract, they established themselves among the Nubians 6
in groups principally on the west bank, a simple hypothesis is arrived at which fulfils
all the data, both archaeological and textual. This hypothesis becomes something more
than theory when it is found that, in classical times, the Libyans were established,
though still as intruders, farther to the South. Strabo, the best classical authority on
the Sudan, who was himself as far south as Philae at a time when, because of the recent
punitive expedition of Petronius, 7 much new information was to be had, makes the
following remarkable statement : " Above Meroe is Psebo, a large lake, containing a
well-inhabited island. As the Libyans occupy the western bank of the Nile, and the
Aethiopians the country on the other side of the river, they thus dispute by turns the
possession of the islands, and the banks of the river, one party repulsing the other, or
yielding to the superiority of its opponent." 8
It would thus appear that the Temehu of the time of Harkhuf, the traders in
" Timhy stones," had moved southwards, finding in that direction less resistance to their
expansion than in the other, but still remaining an unabsorbed and foreign element
1 BAR iv. §§ 373, 389. 2 BAR i. §311.
3 Else we should not find Uni, in the time of Pepi I., recruiting mercenaries from them.
* H. Brugsch, op. tit. ii. p. 78 ; cf. LD iii. 229 <.. Against Brugsch's view, vide BAR iv. § 373, note ad he. tit.
Breasted's objection is now, I believe, overruled by the new archaeological evidence.
5 BAR i. 8 33c. 6 Using the word in its geographical sense.
7 J. G. Milne, Egypt under Roman Rule, p. 21 sq., for this expedition.
8 Strabo xvii. p. 822 ; cf. what is said by the same writer, xvii. p. 786, "On the left (west) of . . . the Nile live
Nubae in Libya, a populous nation. They begin at Meroe and extend as far as the bends. They are not subject to the
Aethiopians, but live independently, being distributed in several sovereignties." These "Nubae" were perhaps partly
negroid Libyans. Ptolemy (iv. 6 § 5) gives the Libyan Garamantes a southeasterly extension to Lake Nuba (Psebo ?) . . .
to re tmv TapafidvTwv Si-Tjkov airb rov tou BaypaSa iroTajxov Triyywi/ /xe'x/» tiJs Noi5/3a A.i>i<7/s.
5°
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
among the older population. Under these circumstances, it is not strange that there
should occasionally be found on the Egyptian monuments Libyans of slightly negroid aspect.
That the whole body of the Libyans of the Egyptian records lay properly in
" Eastern Libya," and was not so remote from the Nile as some writers would place it,
THE GREAT GREEN
lAfagihzh
SeAet- imitP .^o\
HaharTah
Ta-thet % ^
Farafrah
AlAP IT
ETIfNO - GEOGRAPHY
OF
EASTERN LIBYA Ca..
I200B.C.
Modulus J: 6. 77$. Ouu
^H
DaJilah
w
Desdeset
is clear from the fact that the Egyptians invaded the Rebu and their neighbours, and
from the fact that the Merneptah invasion arrived in Egypt apparently about three
weeks after starting. Twenty days at even twenty miles a day is only about 400 miles.
With allowance for halts, etc., this gives roughly 300 miles, i.e. Cyrenaica to Egypt.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 51
The ancient ethnic area of the Eastern Libyans in general having thus been
sketched, the distribution of the various tribes, of which enough is known to place them
on the map, may now be taken up in such detail as the data will allow (Map II.).
1. Tehenu. — General designation for easternmost Libyans {i.e. immediately west of Egypt).
By exclusion, probably in the (early) Fayum, and the northern oases, and between the Egyptians
and the Rebu. 1
2. Temehu. — As explained above, probably in the oasis of Hargah, and along the Nubian Nile.
3. Rebu. — Known after (1) and (2), and so west of them. 2 Probably in the Gebel el-'Akabah
and Cyrenaica. For they were attacked by the Meshwesh, 8 who came from well to the west-
ward, and were historically associated with the Sea-Peoples from the west, 4 to whom Cyrenaica,
from its fertility and northerly position, would be the part of Eastern Libya best known and most
accessible. Also, the mention of the " Red Land " in connection with Libya suggests the famous
terra rossa of Cyrenaica, mentioned by modern travellers and well known to the Arab geographers. 5
4. Meshwesh. — West of the Rebu, and the last-mentioned Libyan people of importance in the
Egyptian annals. In an unsettled state, moving from west to east from the time they first appear
until they settled in Egypt. Their weapons and association with the Sea-Peoples suggest that they
took a littoral road, as indicated by the arrow-line on the map.
5. Esbet. — For the reasons given above, introduced, with reserve, in the place later occupied by
the Asbystae, as a part of (3).
6. Befcen.- — Introduced, with yet greater reserve, in the place later occupied by the Bacales.
7. Kehek. — From their number and association with the Rebu, placed with reserve in the
interior of the territories of the latter.
8. Hes. — Tentatively introduced in the place of the modern Hassah. 6
Imukehek, Shai. — Omitted. So, too, with the Seped, Ekbet, and Keykesh, if these are not forms
of the Esbet and Kehek mentioned above.
The Libyan ethnic names on the map are printed in Roman, the other names in
italic, letters.
In classical times the earliest detailed account of the partition of the Libyan tribes is
found in Herodotus. According to the historian, Libya began west of the Nile, 7 and ran
to the Atlantic/ being bordered on the south by the land of the Aethiopians, who were
black and woolly-haired. 9 Within Eastern Libya, which the Greek historian character-
ized as nomadic, lay the following tribes : —
1. Adyrmachidae, ' khvp^ayllav. — From the Egyptian Delta westwards to the harbour called Port
Plynus. 10
2. Giligamae, TiXiydfiai. — From Plynus as far as the island of Aphrodisias. 11
1 Cf. BAR iii. § 579. The chief of the Rebu is there said to have attacked the Tehenu, which he must have done
from the west. Note that the name of the Tehenu became early known to the Egyptians as a general term for Westerner,
which testifies to their early geographic position as the Libyans nearest the Nile.
2 Cf. BAR, he. eit. S BAR iv - § 8 3-
4 BAR iii. § 588 et alibi. 5 E.g. el-Idrisi, Clima iii. 3. Cf. J. M. Hartmann, Edrisii Africa, p. 300 note k.
« See the caution supra, p. +7 ». i+. 7 Herodotus ii. 17, iv. 191 ; cf. iv. 168.
s Ibid. ii. 32, iv. 196. 9 lbid - vii - 70.
10 Herodotus iv. 168. Plynus is placed by Scylax two days west of Apis, Periplus, % 108 ( = "Port Bardia " ?).
Herodotus is explicit in stating that even as far east as Apis and Marea, the population was Libyan (ii. 18).
" Herodotus iv. 169. According to Scylax, he. eit., and Ptolemy, iv. + § 7, Aphrodisias would seem to be the
Sharkiah or Hammam Islands.
52 THE EASTERN. LIBYANS
3. Asbystae, 'Aafivo-Tai. — West of (2), in the vicinity of Cyrene, but' not reaching the coast,
which was held by the Cyrenaeans. 1
4. Auschisae, Ava^iaau — Just south of Barca, and reaching the sea at Euesperis ( = Benghazi).
On the east contiguous to the Asbystae. 2 The same people, apparently, as the Ausigdi, AvatySoc,
mentioned by Callimachus 3 and Hecataeus. 4 The Ausigdi had a city called Ausigda. 6
5. Bacales, Ba/ca\e? var. Ka/3aA,e?. — A little tribe — oXuyov Wvos — enclaved by the Auschitae,
touching the coast at Taucheira. 6
6. Nasamones, Naaa/j,a>ve<;. — " A numerous people," according to Herodotus, 7 the (south-)
western neighbours of the Auschisae, whose territories extended from the coast into the interior,
where they dominated the oasis of Augila ( = Wagilah). Perhaps originally called Mesamones?
Western boundary at some undefined point in the Syrtis Major.
7. Psylli, WvWoi. — -This people had, in the days of Herodotus, withdrawn from their earlier
seat on the Syrtic coast, 9 their lands there having passed into the hands of the Nasamones. 10 As,
however, the Psylli still existed at a later period, 11 they are placed, with reserve, on the map illus-
trating Herodotus's repartition of the Libyan tribes (Map III.).
8. Macae, Mdicau. — On the shores of the greater Syrtis, west of the Nasamones. 12
9. Gindanes, Tivhave?. — Adjoining (8) on the west. This name 13 appears to have been that of
an important division of the Lotophagi. For the latter descriptive name was already, in the time
of Herodotus, applied especially to a community living on a promontory in the territory of the
Gindanes, 14 and tended to supplant, among the Greeks, to whom it had become traditionally familiar, 15
the indigenous name. The fact that besides the little group of Lotophagi mentioned by Herodotus,
other tribes, like the Machlyes, 115 made use of the lotus fruit, would encourage the spread of the term.
10. Machlyes, Ma^Xue?. — West of the Lotophagi, as far as the river Triton, 17 in the Lesser
Syrtis. ls Found later as the Ma^pws in the same position. 19
11. Auseans, Aucre'e? (var. Aueret?, as in Apollodorus 20 ). — Like the Machlyes, from whom they
were separated by the Triton river, the Auseans lived in the vicinity of the Lake Tritonis. 21 This is
the last (westernmost) tribe of the nomadic Libyans of Herodotus, 22 but it is convenient to mention
here the three following as well : —
1 Herodotus iv. 170. Inland position of Asbystae, confirmed by Dionysius, Perieg. 211, 'Ao-/3i'crTai 8' kiri touti
liecrrjirtipoi, TeXWovcriv, ktX. ; cf. Nonnus, Dionysiaca xiii. 370.
2 Herodotus iv. 171.
3 Callimachus ap. Steph. Byz. in verb. AvcriySa.
4 Hecataeus ap. ibid. loc. cit. = Frag. 300, in FHG.
5 The intermediary form between AY2-X-i2-at and AYS-t-F-A-ot is found as AY2-X-i-T-ai in Stephanus Byzantinus
in verb. The permutation of S and T-D in Berber names is general.
6 Herodotus, loc. cit.
7 Ibid. iv. 172 ; cf. ii. 32. Cf. Scylax § III ; Strabo xvii. p. 836 ; Pliny v. 5.
8 Pliny, loc. cit. Popular classical etymology related the name Mesamones to //ieros + i/'a/z./xos, but the frequency of
Mes- as a filiative prefix in Berber discredits this derivation. The name has in modern times been often analysed as
poiT'2'i, "men of Amon " (first by S. Bochart, Geogr. Sacra, col. 284, 1. 54 sqq.) ; and as 7\ X I \\ (I , n/psy-imn, "the
Southerners (or Negroes) of Amon " [!].
9 Part of which was called in earlier times by Hecataeus the " Psyllic Gulf" ; Hecataeus, Frag. 303, in FHG = Idem,
ap. Steph. Byz. in verb. tyvXXoi . . ^vXXiKbs koXttos, kv rw Ai/3uk(J) koXttii). . . .
10 Herodotus iv. 173. n Pliny v. 4 ; Ptolemy iv. 4 § 6 ; Strabo xvi. p. 838, etc.
12 Herodotus iv. 175. Confirmed by Scylax, loc. cit. ; called by Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6 ; Mafcai ol HvpTirai, and misplaced
inland. 13 Herodotus iv. 176 ; Stephanus Byzantinus, in verb. TwSaves, fflvos AtftvKov AcuTO</>ayov, ktX.
14 Herodotus iv. 177. The promontory, by a process of exhaustion, appears to have been Zarzis, or Zuchis, near the
Syrtis Minor ; cf. Scylax, § no ; Strabo xvii. p. 835.
15 From the time of Homer, Odyss. ix. 84. sqq. 16 Herodotus iv. 178.
17 Ibid. loc. cit. 18 For the position of the lake and river Tritonis, vide supra, p. xiii.
19 Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6. Miscalled Ma^/xes in Stephanus Byzantinus in verb. Ma^ucs. Cf. infra, p. 53 n. 1.
20 Apollodorus, Frag. 109, in FHG. 21 Herodotus iv. 180. 22 Ibid. iv. 191.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY
12. Maxyes, Md%ve<;. — Next to the Auseans. 1
13. Zaueces, or Zabyces, Zav V ice<; var. ZdPv/ces. 2 — Next to the Maxyes.
14. Gyzantes, TvfrvTes var. Zvyavres* — Next to the Zaueces.
53
ETHNO - GEO GRAPH Y
or EASTERN LIBYA.
HEJR.ODOTUS
MODULUS / .13.330,000
Thus far the coast has been followed in a direction from east to west. To turn to
the interior, the positions may be noted of the following ethnic groups mentioned by-
Herodotus as being there situated : —
15. Garamantes, YapdfiavTe'i. — In the interior, ten days west of Augila, and so in northern
Phazania (Fezzan), having a population of troglodytic Aethiopians as neighbours.*
16. Gamphasantes \^Tap$aaavTe<i\ . — South of the Nasamones, in a wild-beast region. A power-
less and degenerate tribe. Herodotus calls them Garamantes, but he describes them as feeble and
ignorant of arms, and not knowing how to defend themselves. 5 This is flatly contradicted later, 6
where the Garamantes appear as a warlike nation of slave-hunters. In the second passage, more-
over, the Garamantes are introduced as if for the first time. The text, therefore, is corrupt ; but
the difficulty becomes clear from the later evidence. Mela and Pliny, closely following Herodotus,
ascribe the weakness and ignorance of arms just mentioned, not to the Garamantes, but to a people
called Gamphasantes, 7 by which the reading is to be restored.
1 Herodotus, loc. cit. and iv. 193. Mentioned first by Hecataeus, Frag. 304, in FHG. The Mafues of Steph. Byz.
in verb. Mafues, 01 Atf3vr]s vop,d8e<;- 'E/caraios Trepiqyqo-ci. dal <5e ko.1 (repot Ma£ues nal eVepoi Ma^es. For Max/«s
one should almost certainly read MdxA/ues.
2 Herodotus iv. 193 ; Hecataeus ap. Steph. Byz. in verb. The form Zaf3v- may be a copyist's error for Bufa-, seen
in this region as Byzacium, etc., but cf. var. Gyz-antians, Zyg-antians, infra, p. 54.
3 Herodotus iv. 194; Eudoxus Cnidius ap. Apollonium Dyscolum, xxxviii. For the variants cf. preceding note.
The form Ziry- was that used by Hecataeus (ap. Steph. Byz. in voc. ZvyavTi'9) ; cf. Zeug-itana.
* Herodotus iv. 183 ; cf. Lucian, De dipsadibus, § 2. 6 Herod, iv. 174. 6 Ibid. iv. 183.
7 Mela i. 8 ; Pliny v. 8. The name, it may be remarked, seems connected with that of Phazania — Gam-/^«w»-tes.
The corruption of Herodotus is at least as early as Eustathius (ad Dionysii Perieg. 217), and Steph. Byz. (in verb.). Cf.
Martianus Capella, De nuptiis Philologiae, etc., p. 232 sq. (lib. vi.). The name there appears as Campasantes. Capella is
here following Pliny.
54
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
17. Ammoniam, 'Afi/j.covioi. — Sedentaries of Siwah Oasis. 1
The above data are embodied in the map of fifth-century Libya (Map III.).
The next writer who contains information on which a satisfactory partition of the
East Libyan tribes can be made is the geographer Scylax. Scylax does not treat the
ethnic divisions as minutely as does Herodotus, but mentions the position of the
following large groups : —
1 . Jdyrmachidae, 'ASv^a^tSat. — Next to Egypt, not on the coast itself, which was Egyptianized
as far as the town of Apis.
2. Marmaridae, MapfiapiSai,. — West of (1), and extending across the interior of Cyrenaica
almost, but not quite, to the Syrtis Major. This is the first notice of this people who were in
later times so well known, and who bestowed the name Marmarica upon the region they inhabited.
The Marmaridae comprised undoubtedly many tribes 2 — among them, perhaps, the Giligamae of
Herodotus, since the latter are not mentioned in later times (except by Steph. Byz. in verb., and
not independently of Herodotus).
3. Nasamones, Naa-a/xa^e?. — In the eastern Syrtis Major, south-west of Cyrenaica (2), and
extending westwards to the Philaenorum Arae.
4. Macae, Ma/cat. — In the western Syrtis Major from (3) to the Cinyps river {i.e. nearly to
the modern Tripoli).
AZ/LP IV
ETHNO -GEOGRAPHY or EASTERN LIBYA
ACCORDING TO SCYLAX MOBULTSS /.' 13,550,000
5. Lotophagi, Acorocpdyoi.— Under this descriptive, Scylax designates those coastwise Libyans
between the Cinyps on the east, and Gichthis (on the main opposite Gerbah Island) on the west.
The name served to embrace a number of tribes, such, for example, as the Erebidae. 8
6. Zygantes, Zvyavres. — About Lake Tritonis. This people would appear to be the Gyzantes of
Herodotus, who are by the earlier writer given a place somewhat north of the position assigned
them by Scylax. There is certainly some confusion as to this ethnic name. The simple metathesis
of the Tv%- of Herodotus to the Zwy- of Hecataeus 4 causes no difficulty in the Greek transcription of
a barbarous name. When one considers the large body of evidence which indicates that the region
inhabited by the people in question was called Byzacenis, Byzacium, or Byzacitis, the suspicion at
once arises that the true form of the ethnic was neither Zvy- nor Tvi,- but Buf-. 5 T, it is hardly
1 Herodotus iv. 181 ; cf. Idem, ii. 32.
2 The later Marmaridae may have included some Semitic nomads from Sinai or Arabia. At all events, Agroetas,
Frag. 1 in FHG, mentions an eponymous "Marmaris " son of "Arabs."
3 Philistus, Frag. 33, in FHG. 'EptfSiSat, /xepos A.uno(f>dywv.
i Hecataeus ap. Steph. Byz. in verb. Zvyavris= Frag. 306 in FHG. 5 Cf. Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 55
necessary to remark, is a dialect equivalent of B in Berber, and it may therefore be said with a fair
degree of certainty that (a) the commonest form of the ethnic name was B^amei ; (b) a local
variant was rftavres ; (c) while ZuyavTe? is another variant by metathesis.
The data drawn from Scylax are exhibited in Map IV. The date of Scylax has
given rise to much discussion, but may be taken as circa 320 b.c.
The distribution of the Libyan tribes made by Strabo, some four and a half
centuries after Herodotus, is, like that of Scylax, based on broader lines than that of
the historian. Instead of treating the Libyans tribe by tribe, Strabo is content to deal
with them in following ethnic groups : —
1. Marmaridae, Map fiaplSai.— -West of Egypt along-shore to Cyrenaica, 1 i.e. as far as the
Catabathmus Major a ( = 'Akabah es-Sollum). It was in the west of this district that the bulk of the
Marmaridae were to be found, and they extended south to Ammonium. 3
2. Nasamones, Nao-a/^e?.— West of (1), across the south slope of the Cyrenaic plateau 3 to
the Altars of the Philaeni ( = approx. Muhtar) in the bottom of the Syrtis Major. 4
3. Psylli, ^TvKXol. — Strabo mentions this people as sharing the Syrtis Major with (2). 6 As
the latter came west, as just noted, to the Philaenorum Arae, it is to be supposed that the Psylli
extended from that point to the Cephalae promontory ( = Ras Mizratah), where the Libyphoenicians
began. 6 It is therefore loosely that Strabo calls the Psylli Cyrenean. 7 In confirmation of the
position just given the Psylli, is the order in which they are mentioned with other Libyans by
Strabo. 8
4. Hesperitae Libyans, 'Eairypirai A//3i/e?. — These are the only Libyans to whom Strabo gives a
name, whom he places actually within fertile Cyrenaica. 9 They were, of course, called Hesperitae
from Euhesperis ( = Benghazi), near which, in the vicinity of the Lethalus ( = Lethe) "river," they dwelt.
5. Asbystae, ' Kafivarai. — Placed west of the Major Syrtis, between the Psylli and Byzacii, who
extended to Carthage. 10 Strabo has here fallen into a serious confusion which it is not possible to
untangle, and which, happily, is not usual to him. The position of the Asbystae is rectified on
Map V., their position in Strabo being certainly wrong.
6. Byzacii, Bv^d/aoi. — See (5).
7. Libyphoenices, Ai/3u<£otWe?. — Under this general descriptive, Strabo designates those
tribes of the littoral which extended from the Cephalae Promontory ( = Ras Mizratah) to Carthage. 11
The name is significant, and may be compared to such terms as BXaaTofoLvuces, etc.
8. Lotophagi, Awrocpdyoi. — This descriptive has been noted as applied by Herodotus to a
group within the territories of the Gindanes. Strabo, on the authority of Artemidorus, mentions
Lotophagi in Western Libya, in the interior, and adds that Lotophagi are reported to exist even as
far east as Southern Cyrenaica. 12 Such an extension of a title merely derived from the practice of
eating a fruit is of no significance ; from Strabo himself it is clear that the Nasamones were the
nation south of Cyrenaica. When this writer, however, specifically says that " there are others also
called Lotophagi who inhabit Meninx, one of the islands opposite to the Lesser Syrtis," 13 his state-
ment warrants our placing " Lotophagi " on the map in the position named. The term Lotophagi
belongs to that unsatisfactory class of descriptives of which Criophagi, Acridophagi, Ichthyophagi,
Macrobii, etc., are examples.
1 Strabo ii. p. 131. 2 Ibid. xvii. p. 838. 3 Ibid. loc. cit.
* Ibid. xvii. p. 836 ; cf. ii. p. 131. 5 Ibid. ii. p. 131. G Ibid. xvii. p. 835.
7 Ibid. xvii. p. 814. s Ibid. xvii. p. 838. " Ibid. xiv. p. 647.
10 Ibid. ii. p. 131. n Ibid. xvii. p. 835. 12 Ibid. iii. p. 157 ; cf. xvii. p. 829. 13 Ibid. iii. p. 157.
56
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
9. Gaetulians, TcutovXol.— Beyond the Psylli, according to Strabo, 1 and, it may be added, away
from the coast, lay the Gaetulians. 2 The Gaetulians covered a vast area, occupying the South Atlas
slopes, 3 and the mountainous tracts south of the Libyphoenices. 4 Their eastern extremity was in
the longitude of the Syrtis Major. 5
10. Garamantes, Tapdpavres.— South of the preceding, 6 with whose territories those of the
Garamantes lay parallel, running as far to the east as to be 15 days' journey from Ammonium 7
{i.e. approximately to the longitude of the bottom of the Syrtis Major).
11. Libyans, name not otherwise specified.— Lastly must be noted the Libyans settled above
Meroe, on the west bank of the Nile, already mentioned. (Not shown on the map.)
These data are summarized in Map V.
ETTfNOGEOGRAPHYoFEASTERNLIBm STRABO
MODULUS / .' 13, SSIO. OOO
G /£ T U L I
GAR AM ANTES
Another repartition of Libyan tribes made at about the same time as Strabo's,
though with less care, is that of Diodorus Siculus. As one would expect, Diodorus,
here, as usually, deficient in geographical sense, is content to outline the main masses of
the Libyans in a very general manner. Of the divisions he makes, the following are
to be noted : —
1 . Marmaridae. — Egypt to Cyrenaica, 8 as in Strabo.
1. Auschisae. — South-western Cyrenaica. 8
3. Nasamones. — Eastern part of Syrtica Regio, 8 below Auchisae.
4. Macae. — In the western part of the Syrtica Regio. 8
5. Libyphoenices. — Held numerous towns along the coast, 9 extending, one may suppose, as far
to the east as Carthage, as in the case of the Libyphoenices of Strabo.
1 Strabo xvii. p. 838.
2 Cf. ibid. ii. p. 131, and all other evidence on this people, which never established itself on the coast.
Ibid. xvii. p. 826 ; cf. Eustathius, ad Dionys. Perieg. 215, where the Gaetuli are spoken of as the greatest of the
Libyan peoples. * Strabo xvii. p. 835.
5 Ibid. ii. p. 131, xvii. p. 829. 6 Ibid. ii. p. 131, xvii. p. 835. " Ibid. xvii. p. 835.
8 Diodorus Siculus iii. 49. 1. 9 Ibid. xx. 55. 3.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY
These tribes, as signalized by Diodorus, are shown in Map VI.
57
At a period a little after that of Strabo and Diodorus, but still in the first
century a.d., Pliny gives further geographical notices which again allow the construction
of an ethnic map. This writer has based his description of Eastern Libya on that of
Mela, to whom he added such new details as he had derived from accounts of the
Roman military expeditions. The author of the Historia Naturalis mentions in Eastern
Libya the following tribes : —
i. Mareotae. — In the vicinity of Lake Mareotis ( = Mariut). 1
2. Adyrmachidae. — Between (i) and the Marmaridae. 1
3. Marmaridae. — Catabathmus Major west almost to Syrtis Major. 2 Really in South-eastern
Cyrenaica. 3
4. Ararauceles. — Between (3) and the Syrtis Major. 4
5. Nasamones. — Eastern littoral Syrtis Major. 4
6. Hasbitae ( = Asbystae). — Erroneously placed by Pliny after {i.e. west of) the Nasamones,
with the Macae. 4 Perhaps the reference should be interpreted as meaning that the Asbystae lay
north of the Nasamones, the Macae west of them, as is indicated by the other evidence.
7. Lotophagi. — Placed by Pliny in the bottom of the Syrtis Major with the Philaenorum Arae
as their eastern boundary. 5 Hence, too far to the eastwards.
8. Macae.—West of the Nasamones, 6 placed along the western littoral of the Syrtis Major.
9. Cisippades. — West side of the Syrtis Major. 7
10. Libyphoenices. — In Byzacium to the Syrtis Major. 8
1 Pliny v. 6. .
2 Ibid. loc. cit. and v. 5. In the latter place, the Marmaridae are carelessly said to extend all the way to the Syrtis.
But from the phrase immediately following, it appears that the Ararauceles and the Nasamones intervened.
3 Cf. Ptolemy, iv. 5 § 1. r
* Pliny v. 5. The reading for No. 4 is Acrauceles, var. Acraceks,Acrauciles, but the form given above seems to be
the purest, and is preserved as 'ApapavK^Xes, 'ApavpaKiSes by Ptolemy iv. 4 § 6.
5 Pliny v 4 Inintimo dm [scil Syrt. Maior.] fuit ora Lotophagon, quos quidam Machroas dtxere, ad Philaenorum aras.
(A variant of Machroas is Alachroas.) In placing the Machroes ( = Machryes) so far to the east, and in confusing them
with the Lotophagi, Pliny has committed a double error. 6 Ibid. v. 5. z . v. 4.
« Ibid. loc. cit. Their extent is there shown by the cities said to lie within their territories. Cf. Livy xxi. 22 on
these half-breeds.
58 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
[n. Machryes. — Confused by Pliny with the Lotophagi as noted above. 1 The notice can be
taken only as showing that the Machryes ( = Maguey = Ma^Xne?) were known in Pliny's day, their
true position about Lake Tritonis being made clear from the earlier notice of Herodotus, 2 and the
later one of Ptolemy. 8 ]
12. Capsitani. — Spoken of as in the interior of the Syrtica Regio, 4 and almost certainly to be
placed around Capsa ( = Kafsah).
The following small communities 5 (Nos. 13-21), some of which lay slightly to
the west of Eastern Libya, are mentioned with (12), but are not entered on the map : —
13. Natabudes. (Var. Nattabutes, Nathabutes.)
14. Musulami. — The Musulani of Florus 6 = the Musulini of Tacitus. 7
15. Sabarbares {vide Map VIII.).
16. Massyli. — In the west.
1 7 . Nicives.
1 8 . Vamacures.
1 9. Cinithi. — About Lake Tritonis.
20. Musuni {vide Map VIII.).
2 1 . Marchubi.
22. Augilae. — Considered wrongly by Pliny as an extensive people, whom he erroneously
places half-way between Aethiopia and the Syrtis. 8 It may be, however, that the Augilae {var.
Augylae) had penetrated as far south as the oasis of Kufra, and that it was this which Pliny wished
to express.
23. Psylli. — Formerly, says Pliny, the Psylli were above {i.e. south of) the Garamantes. 8 This
extraordinary statement cannot be accepted to mean more than that the Psylli were withdrawn from
the coast. The story told by Herodotus of the battle of the Psylli against the south wind 9 appears
to have been a native version of the account given by Pliny, to the effect that the Psylli were nearly
exterminated by the Nasamones, who then took possession of their territories. 10 The same writer
gives indirect testimony of the Psylli's having originally been seated on the littoral, when he says that
" they received their name from Psyllus, one of their kings, whose tomb is in existence in the district
of the Greater Syrtis." 10 From this evidence the Psylli have been entered on Map VII. in the
interior of the Syrtica Regio.
24. Garamantes. — Placed by Pliny twelve days' journey from the Augilae, 11 in the interior.
Their capital city is mentioned elsewhere as having been Garama, 12 which is doubtless to be identified
with Germah ; Talgae and Debris also belonged to them. 12
25. Phazanii. — In a region which he calls Phazania, and locates south of the Syrtis Minor,
Pliny places a natio or ethnic group called Phazanii, to whom he attributes the towns of Alele,
Cillaba, and Cydamus. 12 The last-named town can be identified with Ghadames, 13 which, although
it lies to the west of the modern Fezzan, was within the district denominated Phazania by Pliny.
This is borne out not only by the evidence of the names, 14 but by the fact that Phazania was
I Pliny v. 4 ; vide supra, p. 57, n. 5. 2 Herodotus iv. 178.
3 Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6. 4 Pliny v. 4. ° All mentioned ibid. he. cit.
6 L. Annaeus Florus, Hist. iv. 12.
7 Tacitus, Annates ii. 52, iv. 24 ; cf. C. O. Castiglioni, Mcmoire . . . sur la partie orientale de la Barbarie, etc., p. 112.
8 All mentioned by Pliny v. 4. 9 Herodotus iv. 173.
]0 Pliny vii. 2. The littoral position of the Psylli may be responsible for the fact that Nonnus, in relating the story of
their war against the South Wind, says that the expedition was a naval one {Dionysiaca, xiii. 381 sqq.).
II Pliny v. 4. 12 j bid- v _ 5 _
13 Cf. Procopius, De aedificiis, vi. 3 ; cf. V. de Saint Martin, Le Nord de P Afrique, p. 116.
14 Fezzan ^\ji was early adopted by Arabic writers, e.g. Ibn Haldun, Kitab el- I bar, Transl. de Slane, vol. i.
pp. 191, 192. Cf. J. M. Hartmann, Edrisii Africa, p. 136 sq.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY
59
er
cities
primarily a Garamantic country, and as such would, like the modern Fezzan, lie naturally und
the Syrtis Major. 1 In the triumph of Cornelius Balbus were exhibited the Garamantic citL„
of Phazania— Talgae, Debris, and the capital, Garama. In the same triumph were also displayed
the five following nationes, which are listed in a north-south direction and are not entered on the
map : —
26. Niteris.
27. Bubeium. Cf. the Limes Bubensis of the Notitia Bignitatum?
28. Enipi.
29. Discera.
30. Nannagi.
31. Gaetuli. — The Gaetulians are vaguely placed by Pliny in the interior, north of the Liby-
I^LAR VZf
ETNNO - GEOGRAPHY or EASTERN LIBm.
ju=-te& RJLIJVV
MODULUS I Z3.550, 000
GAETULI ~ Q
PHAZANI1
o Gamma.
GARAMAN TES
Egyptians, 3 and south (presumably) of the Garamantes. Their true position having been along the
north-western confines of the Sahara, and not farther eastwards than the Garamantes, they have not
been entered on the map in the position erroneously assigned to them, but at the eastern limits of
their territories.
32. Libyaegypti [Libues Aegyptii). — The Liby-Egyptians lie between the Leucaethiopians and the
Gaetuli, in an otherwise unspecified position. 4 On the map they will be seen occupying the Egyptian
oases, since they are by Ptolemy placed south of the Nitriotae of the modern Wady Natrun. 6
1 Cf. Pliny v. 4, xiii. 19 and passim in speaking of the Garamantes ; Dionysius, Perieg. 216 sq. ; Priscian, Perieg.
201 sq. ; Ptolemy iv. 7 § ro, where the variants are 'Atj>.via and 4>d£aKa, and where, though speaking of the Phazanians
vaguely as a people west of the Nile, he notes Garama and other Phazanian towns as Garamantic. Cf. Agathemerus,
Geographiae inform at io ii. 7.
2 Notitia dignitatum utriusque imperii, etc., p. 166. v. Cf. C. O. Castiglioni, op. cit. p. 108. Bubeium is certainly not
to be related to yJ^L) as Castiglioni suggested.
3 Pliny v. 8. 4 Cf. Mela i. 4, and Orosius i. z § 32. l Ptolemy, iv. 5 § 12.
6o
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
33. Leucaethiopes (Leucoe Aethiopes). — The " White Aethiopians " are placed by Pliny 1 south of
(32). The location is too vague to be of value geographically, but the name has a distinct
and obvious value as anthropological evidence. These Leucaethiopes of Pliny may be the Libyans
of the Nubian Nile.
This ends the list of Libyan peoples mentioned by Pliny, and whose relative
positions are entered in Map VII.
The following repartition of tribes — that of Ptolemy — demands a word of preface.
The Alexandrian writer was, it should be recalled, much more a mathematician than an
ethnographer. His tendency is always toward giving astronomically determined loca-
tions to the sites and peoples he deals with. With him, even when placing nomadic
tribes, it is always an affair of rectangles. This has led often to the commission of really
serious errors, and from a map constructed on Ptolemy's data alone it would appear that
in his time there were a number of Libyan tribes existing in districts which are sheer
desert ! It is, therefore, necessary to correct or to confirm his statements, when
possible, by other evidence. It may also be remarked that Ptolemy, because he is
treating his subject mathematically, tends to deal with small tribes rather than with
larger ethnic groups — i.e. his interest being in fixed points, he falls naturally into the
habit, when dealing with divisions of a race, of treating them in the smallest possible
ethnic groups (cf. Map VIII.). This, while it leads him into exaggerations, has yet
its value : from him may be learned, for example, of many tribes in Africa and Asia
which are elsewhere unmentioned, and their names are not infrequently of some
philological significance. The following are those ethnic units which he mentions
as existing in Eastern Libya : —
1 Pliny v. 8. Ptolemy, iv. 6 § 6, places a group of Leucaethiopes in the west. The "White Aethiopians" are,
presumably, the gentes Libyoaethlopum of Orosius i. 2 § 88.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 61
i. Mareotae, MapewTcu. — The population of the modern Mariut. 1 As in the case of (2), (4),
(7). ( I2 )> (19)) and (30), the name is really a locative and not an ethnic. These, and all the other
tribes bordering close upon Egypt were undoubtedly much fused with the inhabitants of the Nile
Valley.
2. Nitriotae, Nirpiwrcu. — Inhabitants of the modern Wady Natrun, west of the Delta. Placed
too far south by Ptolemy, in the northern Fayum. 2
3. Libyaegyptii, AifivaiyvTrnoi. — This people — a mixed one as shown by its name — Ptolemy locates
west of the Nile in the Middle Egypt. 2 As the only habitable areas in that region are the oases
(Hargah, Dahlah, etc.), there can be no doubt but that this descriptive term is an equivalent of, or
comprises, the Oasitae, under which designation Ptolemy speaks of the oasis-dwellers. Ptolemy is
therefore slightly in error in treating the people which bore both these names as two, instead of
as one.
4. Oasitae, 'Oacrircu. — The Oasis-dwellers (see (3)). 2
5. Goniatae, YwviaTai. — A little N.W. of the Mareotae. Not otherwise known. 2
6. Mastitae,MaaTiTcu. — West of the Mareotae. South of the Goniatae. 8 Not otherwise known. 4
{Prosoditae, TIpoao&iTai. — The correct reading should almost certainly be Yipoa-oTrlrai, Prosopitae,
referring not to a Libyan tribe but to the inhabitants of Prosopis in the Western Delta. Therefore
omitted on the maps.) 2
7. Ogdaemi, "OyBaifioi. — South of (6), in the vicinity of Mt. Ogdaemum, "OySaipov opos.
Otherwise not known. 2
8. Ruaditae, 'YovaSirai. — Given an impossible position by Ptolemy, west of the Libyaegypti. 2
Not otherwise known.
9. Adyrmachidae, ' A8vpp,a%i,8ai, var. 'Ahvpixa^Tai etc. — This old ethnic group seems still to have
existed in the time of Ptolemy, who however places it N.W. of (8) and S.W. of (7) in an utterly
uninhabitable region. 2 From previous sources already noted the location of the Adyrmachidae is
to be rectified by putting them north of the site allotted them by Ptolemy, almost, but not quite,
on the coast. It is probable that the Adyrmachidae included some of the smaller tribes mentioned
by Ptolemy, such as (5), (6), (7), (10), and (12).
10. Anagombri, 'Avdyo/j,ftpoi,. — Placed impossibly S. by W. of the Adyrmachidae. 2 Otherwise
unknown.
11. Buzeans, Boufet? (var. /3oin-et?). — Placed N. by W. of the Adyrmachidae, 2 and so, perhaps,
on the coast. If the form of the name as here given is correct, they are otherwise unknown.
12. Zygeans, ZvyeU. — On the coast, 2 by the hamlet called Z.ygis,ZvyU Xifirfv, and so correctly located.
13. Chattani, Xarravol,. — Placed by Ptolemy west of (12) on the coast ; 2 and correctly, since
they are in the vicinity of a small town, Chettaea, Xerraia.
14. Zygritae, Zvyplrai. — Next the Chattani, and, like them, correctly placed, 2 being in the
vicinity of the sea-town of Zygris, Zvyph /au/^. 5 Cf. No. 12.
15. Aniritae, ' kveiplTai var. 'Aveopeirai. — West of the Zygritae, and on the shore 6 of the
Catabathmus Major. Otherwise not known.
1 Ptolemy iv. 5 §§4,12, mentions the district. For the people, Pliny v. 6.
2 Ptolemy iv. 5 § 12.
3 Ibid. loc. cit. A tribe of this name also appears in Aethiopia, Ptolemy iv. 7 § 10.
4 Possibly to be identified with the Mao-Trjvoi of Philistus, Frag. 30 b, in FHG.
5 For Zvyph Kiip.rj, Ptolemy iv. 5 § 3. An old, but still current, error of identification concerning the Zygritae,
Chattani, and Proso(p)itae may here be noted. By G. Unger, Chronohgie des Manetho, p. 218, these tribes were
identified with the Zakkaro, Scharutana, and Purista respectively ! These people — in reality the Shekelesh, Sherden and
Peleset (Sicels, Sardinians, and Philistines) — Unger believed to have been the Libyans defeated by Rameses III.
6 Ptolemy iv. 5 § 12. C. Miiller, ad loc, suggests as a possibility that the name is a clerical corruption for
♦'Aftpn-cu, connecting thus the ethnic with the place-names 'AfiAi's, 'A^pt's, 'Adapts.
62 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
16. Libyarchae, Aifivdpxai. — West of (15), in the Gebel el-'Akabah, and alongshore. 1 Other-
wise not known. 2
17. Bassachitae, Baacra-^LTat var. BaaaayelTau. — Placed by Ptolemy south of the Aniritae. 3 But
C. Muller suggested that as Zygenses, Chattani, and Zygritae were associated with the towns of
Zygis Chettaea, and Zygris respectively, so too the Bassachitae were grouped about the town Masuchis,
Macrou^t'?. The frequency of /3 = /a equivalences in Greek transcriptions of foreign names renders
this at least possible. The frequency of Mas- as a Berber ethnic prefix and the resemblance of
*Mao-o-a^trat to the (^/MZp ) names mentioned at the beginning of this chapter raise the possibility to
a likelihood.
18. Apotomitae, 'AiroTo^lrai. — S. by W. of preceding in an uninhabitable region. 3 Otherwise
unknown.
19. Augilae, AvyiXai. — Placed in nearly the right latitude, but too far to the east, 3 being south
of (16) and (18).
20. Nasamones, 'Na<rap,a>ve<;. — Hopelessly misplaced 3 south of (17), and almost due west of (10).
21. Bacatae, BaKarai. — Placed south of (19), and almost west of (20). 3 Tribe otherwise
unknown, unless the name be a scribal corruption of Ba/raXe?.
22. Auschitae, Avaxirai var. Av^rai. — Misplaced south of (21), south-west of (20). 3
23. Tapanitae, TaTravlrai. — Adjoining preceding on the east, south of (20). 3 Unknown.
24. Iobacchi, 'lofiaicxoi. — Placed impossibly south of (10), and west of (8). 3 Unknown.
25. Oebillae, QlfiiWai. — South of (24). 3 Unknown.
26. Semites, "ZevTtTes. — Adjoining (25) on the west. 3 Unknown.
27. Aezari, Aifrpoi. — In the far south, below (16), (18), (22), etc. 3 Unknown.
28. Marmaridae, Map/j,ap2Bao: — Not located, but the Marmaric Nome is extended inland to
an absurd distance from the sea, 4 southerly from the Gebel el-'Akabah.
29. Ararauceles, ' ' ApapavKrjke? var. 'Apaupa/aSe?. (Agroetas has ' 'Apavpd/C7)[\i]v in ace. sing. 5 ) —
This name has already been seen in Pliny's list. Placed almost correctly by Ptolemy, 6 but a
little too far south, in south-east Cyrenaica.
30. Barcitae, Bap/drat var. BapKelraL. — The Libyans about Barca. Rightly placed. 1 '
31. Asbytae, 'AafivTaL var. 'Aa-^rjrai. — The name has been already discussed above, in
connection with the tribes in Egyptian times. The variant 'Aa-firjrai comes nearest to reproducing
the old form Esbet. Placed by Ptolemy in the south-west instead of in the east of Cyrenaica. 6
32. Macatutae, Ma/carovrat. — Placed in the south-east corner of the Syrtis Major, apparently
correctly. 6
(. . . ra airrfkaia tcov Aaaavuc&v var. AayaviKcov etc. Ptolemy places these " caves of the
Lasanici " well in' the interior, in the vicinity of the Psylli, the latter being on the same parallel,
farther to the east." It is impossible to say if the Lasanici were a people extant in Ptolemy's day,
or what was their true position. In the Antonine Itinerary a point Lasamices is found between
Semerus and Cyrene, and it has been conjectured that this was the site of the Lasinici, 7 and that they
1 Ptolemy, loc. cit. C. Muller, ad loc, observes, Libyarchae . . . qui primi post Pentapolim Cyrenaicam commemorantur,
ab ipso hoc situ, Ai/^s oti <f>alv€Tai dp\rj {Dionys. Perieg [var. lect.\ 214) [in G. Bernhardy, Geographi Graeci Minores, vol. i.
p. 572] nuncupari videntur.
2 Not to be confused with the Ai./3va.p)(ovTes of the Petrie Papyrus, officers in charge of the affairs of the Libyan
Nome, who were bilingual "sheykhs,'' whose birth fitted them to assume the offices in their districts performed by the
Arabarchs in theirs. Vide J. P. Mahaffy, Empire of the Ptolemies, p. 181, § 116.
3 Ptolemy, loc. cit., and vide C. Milller, ad loc.
4 Ptolemy loc. cit. ; C. Muller, Tabulae in Claudii Ptolemaei Geographiam XXXVI. Tab. XXV.
5 Agroetas, Frag, in FHG iv. p. 294.
6 Ptolemy iv. 4 § 6. Apropos of No. 31, does Philistus {Frag. 30 a and b in FHG) intend the Asbystae or Asbytae
by the name 'EXfievTioi ?
7 Itiner. Anton, p. 32 {JVess. p. 70, 5) ; C. Muller, ad Ptol. loc. cit.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 63
were to be found in what is now the Wady Kerayb. 1 The evidence is too slight to allow of anything
like certainty on this question.)
33. Psylli, VvWoi.— South of (29), east of Augilae, and so out of place. 2
34. Macae Syrtitae, ol Mdxai ol "ZvpTirat var. ol Ma/caloi Ivprlrai. — South of the south-east corner
of the Syrtis Major, too far in the interior. 3
35. Cinyphii, Kivvcpooi ; Kiw(pt,ov<; in ace. pi. — At the bottom of the Syrtis Major, 3 and so too
far to the east. For these people, from their name, belonged to the fertile area about the Cinyps
River near Leptis.
26. Elaeones, 'E\a«we?. — Below the Cinyphii. 3 This position, that in which later are to be
found the Seli, leads to the suspicion that the name is rightly *Se\aiS>ve<;, but of this there is no
conclusive proof. It is safer to suppose that the Elaeones were a part of the Seli, as were the
Macomades. 4
37. Nygbeni, NvyPrjvol. — S.S.W. of (36). 5 By confusion, a people with another form of the
same name are placed in Aethiopia. 6 The Nygbeni are placed immediately north of another people
called the Nycpii, NiWtot.' That Ptolemy has here registered the same people twice under slightly
different names seems quite certain. TB = KII, and the -HNot termination is the Berber plural +
the Greek -ot. Nvkttiol is the more Graecized form, as shown both by the introduction of the
7r (unknown in Berber), and by the purely Greek form of the plural in -ol.
38. Nycpii. (See 37).
39. Samamycii, ~%afj.a/MVKLOL var. %a/j.afiUtoi and in ace. plur. %afj,aftvKLov<; (by fj. = 0). — Along
the west Syrtis Major, between the Lotophagi and Cinyphii, 8 and so probably really occupying an
intra-Syrtic position. But it may be remarked that the Notitia dignitatum placed in the Syrtica
Regio the Mamucensis limes. 9 Also, at the bottom of the gulf lay the town Anabucis. 10 In Berber,
S becomes easily prefixed to personal names, cf. Sammon, j„, for Amon, in Si wan legend. Hence,
the variant ~£afiaftvic- given above may be related to the town-name, m and n being universally
equivalent in North Africa — [S-]aNaBi»«- = Anabuc-. As, however, the Elaeones appear to have
occupied the scanty space on the west Syrtic littoral in the days of Ptolemy, and as the evidence
just cited cannot outweigh that which puts the Samamycii between the Lotophagi and the Cinyphi^
they have, with reserve, been given an intra-Syrtic position on the rectified map.
40. Tidamensii, TiSa/iijvo-ioi var. OlSa/irfva-ioi, etc. — South of (39). 11 Unknown, unless C. Muller's
emendation of *¥Li§a,)j,r)vo-ioi, i.e. people of Cidamus or Cidame, 1 ' 2 be accepted. The plausible Ti- prefix
seems against such a correction.
41. Do/opes, AoX,o7T6? var. AoXto7re?. — South of (40). 13 Also far in the interior. 14 Unknown.
42. Erebidae, 'EpefiiSai. — South of (41) 15 and wrongly so. For this tribe formed part of the
Lotophagi, 16 and has been placed accordingly in Map IX.
43. Eropaei, 'Epoiraioi. — West of (39). 17 Unknown.
44. Lotophagi, Aarocpdyoi. — On the intra-Syrtic coast, 17 and so a little too far to the east.
45. Nigitimi, Ntym/iot. — South of (44) between the Syrtes. 17 The name Nigize Gaetuli
(z = t) in the Tabula Peutingeriana, suggests that this people are rightly placed in the interior, but
that they ought to be put more to the westward.
1 F. W. and H. W. Beechey, Expedition to . . the Northern Coast of Africa, p. 569. ("Wady Jerahib.")
2 Ptolemy, he. cit . 3 U>id. iv. 3 § 6.
* Tabula Peutingeriana, Macomades Selorum. The name Macomades survived in Arabic geographical nomenclature as
Mighmadas, ^.u*.. Cf. H. Fournel, Les Berbers, p. 147 n. 7. 5 Ptolemy, loc. cit.
6 Ibid. iv. § 7. The Nuy/V"""' AifltWes. ' Ibid. iv. 3 § 6. s Ibid. he. cit.
9 Notit. dig. p. 89. 9. The name survived in the Syrtica Regio as Kasr Mamakas — ^Lo ,■*>' in J. M. Hartmann,
Edrisii Africa, p. 305. 10 Itiner. Anton, p. 30 {Jt'ess. p. 65, 7). n Ptolemy, loc. cit. and C. Miiller, ad loc. cit.
« Pliny 'v. 5 ; Procopius, De aedificiis vi. 3. 13 Ptolemy, loc. cit. " Ibid. iv. 6 % 6. 15 Ibid. iv. 3 § 6.
w Stephan. Byz. in verb. 'Epe/3i.Sai calls them . /«pos AuTofdywv, on the authority of Philistus.
17 Ptolemy, loc. cit.
64 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
46. Astacures, 'Ao-rd/coupes. — South of (45), west of (39). The position agrees well enough,
though a little too far to the north, with that of the Austuriani of Ammianus, 1 and perhaps the
Astacures are to be identified with that people, who were variously and confusedly known. 2
47. Cinithii, Kivldwi var. Kivrj0ioi, Kivvdiot, Klvdun, etc. — South of the eastern shore of the
Syrtis Minor, only a little east of what seems to have been their true position. 3 The Cinithii have
been already met with among the East Libyan peoples enumerated by Pliny, and they figure in later
times as one of the main divisions of the Libyan race. 4
48. Ogiplonsii, 'OynrXdovaiot, var. SiynrXovatoi. — Inland from (47) and so, according to Ptolemy,
to the south ; but perhaps to the west. 5 . Unknown.
49. Achaemeneans, ' A%aip,evel<i var. 'A^ow/iovet?. — South of (48). 5 Unknown.
50. Muturgures, Movrovpyovpes var. Bovrovpyovpe<s. — South of (49). 5 Unknown.
51. Muchthusii, MouxOovaioi var. Movftdovowoi. — South of (50). 5 Unknown.
52. Machryes, Md^pves. — In the elbow of the Syrtis Minor, 6 and by both position and the
phonetic equivalence of the name, to be identified with the Ma^Xues of Herodotus (x = p), a the
Ma^Xuet?, of Nicolaus Damascenus, 7 and the Machroas of Pliny. 8
53. Gepheans, Tr)<pei<; var. Tvfyels. — South of (52).° Unknown.
54. Mimaces, ML/unce?. — South of (53). 10 Unknown, unless they are to be identified with the
Mt/iaX/ce?, 601/os Ai/3vk6v of Philistus. 11
55. Uzalae, OufaXat. — South of (54). 12 Unknown.
(Byzaces. — Ptolemy mentioning the district called Byzacitis, r/ Bv&kotk; %&>pa 3 lt xs ^ air t0 assume
that the Bvzaces were still to be found in it. He places it with fair accuracy on the north-west of
the Syrtis Minor. 12 )
56. Machyni, Md^vvot var. Ma^woi, Mo^wot. — In the northern part of the Byzacitis sakel. 12
57. Libyphoenices, At,fiv(poiviices. — The mixed Berbers and Semites, who were probably numerous
wheresoever the latter had colonies in North Africa, Ptolemy confines to the district where, to be
sure, they were to be found in the greatest number — viz. north of Byzacitis, near Carthage. 12
(The following tribes also appear on Map VIII. in the localities assigned them by Ptolemy. 12
Iontii, 'lovTLot,.
Mideni, MiSyvoL var. Miarjvoi, MeSyvoL = the Mw6We? of Stephan. Byz. s.v.
Mididii, *MtStStot, correx. C. Miiller.
Musuni, Movaowot = Musunei, lulius Honorius, p. 54.
Saburbures, %afiovp/3ovpe<; ; also in interior, Ptol. iv. 6 § 6 — Sou/3oup7rope?.
Haliardi, ' AXidphoi.
Mampsari, Mafitydpoi var. Mdpp,apoi.
M-Otuturii, MoTovTovpioi var. MaTovTovpioi.
Cerophaei, Kepo<paioL.
Ozutae, 'O£o0tcu.
The names of these tribes, as bordering Eastern Libya on the west, are here given without
other detail.)
1 Ammianus Marcellinus xxvi. 4. 5, xxviii. 6. 2.
2 Vide infra p. 68 and notes. The Astacures are also found in Aethiopia ('Acr-raKou/joi, Ptolemy v. 6 § 6).
3 Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6.
* Chronic. Pasih. vol. i. p. 59, "Acfrpiov Wvr\ kgu airoiKlai eicri 7revTe - Ne^SSijvoi, KvfjOoi, Nou/xi8es, Nao-a/Awves, Saibt
(for 2a/coi). Cf. ibid. vol. ii. p. 102, Afrorum gentes et inhabit ationes hae sunt : Lebdeni, Cinti, Numidae, Nasamones, Saci.
5 Ptolemy, loc.cit. b Herodotus iv. 178, 180. 7 Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 136 in FHG.
8 Pliny v. 4; vide supra, p. 57 n. 5. Perhaps = Mecalcs of Corippus, Johan. iii. 410 and, fide V. de Saint-Martin,
Le Nord de f Afrique, p. 55, the modern Berber tribe of the Maghilah'Axk*..
9 Ptolemy, he. cit. 10 Ptolemy he. cit. Also in the interior, ibid. iv. 6 § 5.
11 Philistus, Frag.. 33 in FHG. vl Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 65
The tribes just reviewed make at first sight an imposing array. It has appeared, how-
ever, that Ptolemy has in some cases named the same tribe twice (as in the instance of the
Nygbeni and Nycpii), that he has placed almost all of them too far to the south and east,
and that in many cases he gives the name of a tribe of which nothing is elsewhere heard.
In the rectification of his map, therefore, it is only in the cases of the best-known ethnic
groups that it is possible to assert with anything like surety that they occupy their proper
jcTNfrmiV £)
ACH/EMENES^S'*
MUTURGURES? A? SttHMYCII
NLA.R.E INTERNUM
MARE ^EGYPTIUM
$
^
AZARI?
ZTliNO-GEOGRAPffYorEASTERN LIBYA .
JtECriFICATIONoFPTOLEMY
MODULUS I- 13, S50, OOO
places. Many tribes are omitted on the rectified map (IX.), and almost all have been shifted
to accord with other ancient notices or with the necessities of geographical position.
In order to form an idea of the repartition of the East Libyans in late Roman
times, shortly before the Arab invasions, it is necessary to draw on a variety of sources.
Some of these need to be dealt with cautiously, since they are rooted in a common
tradition, 1 as the following parallels plainly show : —
Excerpta Barbari?
. . . Syria habens gentes
tres, Nasamona, Ma-
cas, Tautameus 6 . . .
Liber Generationis?
. . Syrtes habens gentes
has, Nasomones, Ma-
cas, Tautameos . . .
Chronicon Anni p. Ch. 334*
. . Syrthes, Nascimenia,
Tautamei . . .
Origo Human'i Generis?
. . Marmaris, Sirtis,
Nasatnonas, Tauta-
mona . . .
1 The relations of the earlier sources, owing to the labours of Detlefsen, d'Avezac, C. Miiller, etc., are fairly well
established. In the earlier part of this chapter they have been recognized, though not discussed.
2 Excerpta Barbarl, p. 61 ( = C. Frick, Chronica minora, vol. i. p. 202).
3 In C. Frick, op. cit. vol. i. p. 20. 4 In ibid. vol. i. p. 88. 5 In ibid. vol. i. p. 139.
6 This form transliterates characteristically the ace. pi. of the lost Greek original *Tain-a/Wous.
K
66 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Other late sources than these exist, but they are none of them very satisfactory, and it is
hard to determine how far they represent the actual ethnography of the period to which
they belong, and how far they depend on Pliny and Mela, or on other earlier writers.
With this preamble, the following groups may be noted : —
i. Marmaridae. 1 — In their old easterly position.
2. Mazices, Mazaces. 2 — Throughout the interior parts of Eastern Libya ; they bordered on the
Austuriani in the west, 3 are heard of as raiding in Cyrenaica, 4 and in the Egyptian oases. 5
3. Barcaei. — The reader has seen that Ptolemy located a small tribe called by him Bap/clrca or
Bap/ceiTcu 6 in the vicinity of Barca, from which town this people took their name. One seeks in
vain in Herodotus for a native population called after the town BdpKrj, though the historian
mentions the district about the city under the term BapKala, 7 and has a gentile adjective, Bapnalo^,
by which he regularly denotes a Greek citizen of Barca. But in Roman times an ethnic formed on
the place-name was used to designate the various remnants of the native population surviving in the
neighbourhood of the city — a development which may have been fostered by the fact that throughout
its history Barca itself was strongly Libyan in character. 8
As early as Vergil one hears of the latique furentes Barcaei, 9 a phrase echoed long after by
Corippus in the line
Barcaei solito curant saevire furore. 10
In Byzantine times the Barceans were regularly spoken of as a distinct ethnic group. Thus,
Barcaei Mauri Libyae (var. Libyes) in Vibius Sequester. 11 Many writers, however, ignore them, as
is conspicuously the case with Synesius. Despite this, and the fact that the Barceans were not a
homogeneous tribe, but a conglomerate, they have been entered in the map in the proper locality
(Map X). 12
4. Nasamones, NesamonesP — Often noticed in their old position in the east Syrtica Regio. 14
5. Sell (natio Seloruni). — In the south Syrtica Regio. 15 This people would appear to be none
other than the old Psylli, returned to their former localities ; ty, it is hardly necessary to observe,
is a sound unknown in Berber language, and it seems that in this late form Seli, one is confronted
with a fairly correct spelling of this ethnic. The particle SL in tribal names was common —
e.g. Mas-SyL-i, Massae-SyL-i, Mus-SuL-ani, SiL-vacae, SiL-cadenit, etc.
1 Flavius Vopiscus, Probus, 9; Corippus, Johannis, ii. 138, iv. 1042, 1 164, v. 147, 507, 565, 574,664, vi. 406,
vii. 169, 300, 381, 427, 455, 531, 636, 647 ; Origo humani generis, loc. cit.; Sidonius Apollinaris, Carm. v. 338.
2 Corippus, Johannis, i. 549 ; iv. 724, 1020, v. 167, 450, 600, vii. 305 ; Nemesian, Cyneget. 261 ; Claudian, In
primo cons. Stilich. i. 356.
3 Philostorgius xi. 8. 4 Ammianus Marcellinus xxvii. 9. 1.
5 Johannes Moschus, Vitae Patru?n, x. 112, in Patrologia Latina, vol. lxxix. col. 176 sqq. ; cf. another notice in the
De vitis patrum, iii. 199, ibid. vol. lxiii. col. 804; Evagrius, Hist. Eccles. i. 7, etc. In general, cf. Corippus, Johannis,
loc. cit., supra n. 2.
6 Ptolemy iv. 4 § 6. Steph. Byz. in verb. Bapio; gives the gentile name as BapKaidrcu. Cf. Oberlin's note in
Vibius Sequester, p. 385. Y Herodotus iv. 171, lev^eipa irdAts rrjs Bapnaiip.
8 Vide infra, pp. 177 n. 4, 230 n. 8, 231 n. 3. 8 Vergil, Aen. iv. 44.
10 Corippus, Johannis, ii. 123. Cf. ibid. iv. 506. n Vibius Sequester, p. 34.
12 The popularity of the name Hj>, Barkah, in the Arabic authors as a designation for the district of Barcea has
perpetuated the name of the region, and thus, indirectly, of the town.
18 This latter form is found in the Tabula Peutingeriana, Seg. vii.
14 Chronic. Pasch. vol. i. p. 59, ii. p. 102 ; Sidonius Apollinaris, Carm. v. 338 ; Corippus, Johannis, v. 198, 552, 589,
593, 692, vi. 465, 510, vii. 95, 177 ; C. Frick, Chronica minora, loc. cit., etc.
15 Two Syrtic towns of the Seli appear in the Tabula Peutingeriana, Seg. vii. The Psylli are mentioned by Sidonius
Apollinaris, loc. cit.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY
67
6. Macetae, Ma/cerai. — This ethnic is but a variant of the earlier Macae, Md/cai, and as there is
good evidence of their activity in late Roman times they have been entered on the map (X.) in their
c\* v "
MAP X
ETHNOGEOGRAPHVof£ASTE/?N LIBYA ■
JA/ BYXAJVT/A/E TIMES
MODULUS / : J3, SSO, OOO
<iA^
A VS[r by IFURACES
MAZ1CES
MAZICES
old seat in the western part of the Syrtis Major. The Macetae are mentioned by Synesius 1 as
having been associated with the Ausuriani in raids into the Pentapolis. By some modern writers
they have been confused with (2), but the identification is very uncertain, despite the geographical
proximity of the tribes.
7. Mamucii. — A tribe on the west littoral of the Syrtis Major. 2 From the name and the
position, one suspects that these people were the Samamycii of Ptolemy.
8. Leuathae, Aevddcu, 3 var. AeftdvOcu ; 4 Aev/cdOcu. 5 This name is of interest, since it has been
conjectured 6 that, derived of its termination, it presents a form of the old ethnic At/3ue?, for Aeva-
= Ae/3a- (by the equivalence, especially in the time of Justinian, of v = /3 — e.g. BdvBikoi, regularly for
Vandalt). Furthermore, the name and its variants have been held to connect the Leuathae with a
tribe which figures prominently in the pages of Corippus 7 — the Ilaguaten or Laguantan (many variants).
For Aevad- = Legath- (by u=g), of which the Berber masculine plural would be *I-legath-en
= Ilag{u)aten. The variant lection Aeftavd- ( = Leuanth-) = Lag(u)ant-, a form approached, though
probably from some scribal confusion with Gr. Aeu/co?, by the var. Aevieddai.
The Leuathae were in Byzantine times spread over a large portion of Tripolitana, as is clear
from the Arabic notices of this people under the name h>\J. In Map X., however, they have
been entered in the vicinity of Leptis, because there is explicit Byzantine evidence of their having
occupied that locality in the time of Justinian. 8
9. Ifuraces? — In the interior of Tripolitana, and from their name and place, to be identified
with a fair degree of sureness with the Beni Ifuren of Ibn Haldun and other Arabic writers.
1 Synesius, Epist. 72 bis.
2 Notitia dignitatum, p. 89. 9, Mamucensis limes.
8 Procopius, Hist. Arcan. 5.
5 Idem, De aedific. vi. 4.
6 P. Mazzucchelli, ad Corippi Johann. i. 144 (notes p. 216).
7 For Laguantan, etc. see Corippus, Johannis, i. 144, 467, iv. 85, 629, 797, 815, v. 166, vi. 535, vii. 434, 474, 501.
For Illaguaten, ibid., var. led. ad iv. 797 (i / a g u a t e n) ; var. lea. ad v. 1 66 (i 1 1 a g u a t e n s i s) ; var. led. ad
vii. 501 (/ a u g u a t a n).
8 Procopius, De bell. Vandal, ii. 21 sqq.
9 Corippus, Johannis, ii. 113, iv. 641, vii. 490, 648. Cf. McG. de Slane, Hist, des Berberes, Appendix i. vol. vi.
P- 577-
Vide supra p. 63 and n. 9.
4 Idem, De .
Vandal, ii. 21, 28.
68 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
10. Ausuriani, * Avaovpiavoi? var. Av%a>piavoi;, ' Austur; 3 Austuriani ; 4 Ahaopiavol ; 6 a pre-
datory people of the interior of Tripoli tana, 6 neighbours of (2) and (9), who in company with the
Macetae or the Mazices harried the Pentapolis. The Ausuriani are one of the two native peoples
mentioned by Synesius. 7
1 1 . Mecales. — Perhaps the old Ma^Xue?, and in their locality. 8
12. Cinithii (male KvrjOoi). — Still extant in late times. 9
These twelve main bodies of the Libyans in Byzantine times are exhibited in Map X.
The following tribes are mentioned in the later literature, but are not entered
in the map because of the unsatisfactory nature of the evidence : —
13. Tautamaei, *TavTa/j.aioi,. — Mentioned as a Syrtic people in several related Latin chronicles. 10
The variant Tautamona is found in one instance. 11
14. Garamantes. — Presumably in their old position, if not mentioned in a spirit of literary
reminiscence. 12
15. Gaetuli. — Ditto™
16. Natabres. u — A Phazanian tribe, presumably located in the vicinity of the "river"
Nathabur. 15
17. Libyoegyptiae.™ — Presumably in the Egyptian oases.
I Synesius, Epist. 119 .. . rbv A[y]<r[o]vpt,avbv ir6\ep.ov. ... 2 Philostorgius, Hist. Eccks. xi. 8.
3 Corippus, Johannis, ii. 89, 209, 345, iv. 816, vi. 283. May not a variant of * Austures be seen in the Astrkes of
Corippus {op. cit. ii. 75, v. 391, 404, 431, 454, 464) ?
i Ammianus Marcellinus xxvi. 4, 5, xxviii. 6, 2.
5 Priscus Panites, Frag. 14 in FHG. (iv. p. 98).
6 Position assigned by consensus of evidence and by the explicit statement of Philostorgius, loc. cit. . . . Av£u>pi.avol
jiera^v Si Aif3vy<s Kal' Afipatv ovroi vifxovTai ktX.
7 Whether or not the Ausuriani are to be regarded as the same people as the Arzuges of Orosius and others is a
quaestio vexata on which a word may be said here. The various lections of Ausuriani are given above, and the consensus
seems to indicate some such form as *AUS<t>UR as most closely representing the native ethnic. The name *Arzugis
exhibits the variants *Auxugis (Auxuge in abl. sing, in Sidonius Apollinaris, Carm. v. 338), *Arzucis {Arzucum in gen.
plur. in Orosius i. 2, § 90, where the best lection is Arzugum), and the adjective form *Arzugitanus {provinciae . . .
Arzugitanae in gen. sing, in S. Aurelius, Concilior. collect, vol. iv. col. 447, cited by P. Mazzucchelli, note ad Corippi Johan.
ii. 148, p. 232). The consensus here is plainly for some such word as *ARZUG ; but the initial AU- of *Auxugis is
not quite to be disregarded, because of the frequency of this prefix in Berber names. The difference between G and R as
terminations of *Arzug and *Aus<t>ur can be explained readily enough as due to different renderings of an original c ; the
equivalence of Arz- and Aus- offers a more serious, but not insuperable, difficulty. It is not easy to escape the feeling that
the two names denote one people, if with the passage already cited from Philostorgius be compared the following :
Orosius i. 2, § 90, Tripolitana provincia, quae et Subventana vel regio Arzugum dicitur, ubi Leptis magna civitas est, quamvis
Arzuges per longum Africae limitem generaliter vocentur . . . (Parallel in Totius orbis descriptio, ed. Baudet, p. 72).
S. Aurelius, loc. cit. [A letter sent in a.d. 419 to all the bishops], per tractum promnciae Byzacenae et Arzugitanae. (Hence
these districts were continuous, as was noted by Morcelli, Africa Christiana, vol. i. p. 84. The " Arzugitan tract " = the
tellus Arzugis of Corippus, Johann. ii. 148.) Coincident location, finally, leads one to suspect that the Ausuriani or
Arzuges. may be the 'A<TTa.Kovpe<s of Ptolemy iv. 3 § 6.
8 Corippus iii. 410. 9 Chronicon paschale, vol. ii. p. 102.
10 Excerpta Barbari ; Liber generationis ; Chronic, an. p. Chr. 334 ; Origo human, gener., loc. cit.
II Origo human, gener., loc. cit.
12 Aethicus, ed. Baudet, p. 72 bis; Corippus, Johannis, v, 198 ; Vibius Sequester, p. 35, Garamantes Mauri Libyae;
Sidonius Apollinaris, Carm. v. 337.
13 Sidonius Apollinaris, loc. cit.; Vibius Sequester, p. 34, Gaetuli Afri Libyae; Corippus, op. cit. iv. 1075. It is to
be remembered that under the name Gaetuli, as under the modern misnomer Tuareg, were comprised many desert tribes.
Thus, Pliny mentions Baniurae-Gaetuli (v. 2) and Darae-Gaetuli (v. 1). It may well be that in later times the ethnic names
of specific groups supplanted the more general designation.
14 Aethicus, loc. cit. var. Natauros ; Orosius i. 2 § 90, Nathabres, var. Nazabres, Natauros, etc. A Gaetulian tribe (?).
16 Pliny v. 5. 16 Orosius i. 2 § 32.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 69
18. Libyaethiopes. 1 — The negroid Libyans of the south.
19. Magempuri. 2 — This tribe must have had some importance in the eyes of Vibius Sequester,
since they are among the six African peoples he lists. They are otherwise quite unknown.
The names of various other tribes — e.g. several in Corippus — I omit altogether,
there being no evidence as to whether they inhabited Eastern or Western Libya.
The ethnogeography of Eastern Libya at the time of the first Mohammadan
invasions is complicated by the confusion of the Arabic sources. The Moslem writers
are not very explicit, nor do they always discriminate between those indigenous tribes
found in the country by the early Mohammadan conquerors, and those which afterwards
came into it from the Moghreb in the train of the Fatimite invaders of Egypt at the
end of the tenth century a.d. 3
The literary opinion generally current among the Arab writers acknowledged
several lines of descent for the various groups of Berbers, each group being referred
to an imaginary, and usually eponymous, ancestor. Among these ancestors two — an
elder and a younger — by the name of Lua (y) figure prominently. 4 The younger
Lua was regarded as the father of Zayr, and (through the latter) of numerous Berber
tribes known under the general designation of Luatah (iiljJ): a name in which it is
easy to recognize the Byzantine ethnic AevdOat,. It is the Luatah who must be regarded
as the predominant branch of the Berber stock in Eastern Libya of the seventh century
a.d. — the Zenatah and Huarah probably came in on the heels of the Fatimites about
IOOO A.D.
1. Luatah, £U. — This name (representing, as has just been mentioned, the late Greek Aevddai)
served the Arab writers as a general designation for all the Berbers of Eastern Libya, much as the
cognate At/3ve? had the Greek historians and geographers. Thus, the Luatah appear in the vicinity
of Tripoli Town, 5 in Barkah, 6 and in Egypt. 7
2. Zenarah, S.U;. — A tribe of the Luatah established in Egypt along the western edge of the
Delta. They continued there until dislodged by the Mameluks, who drove them into Barkah, 8
where another group of Zenarah already existed. 9
[El-Makrizi notices the following tribes of Luatah as living in Egypt : —
The Benu Bailor, jh y». [ = the B. Balain ^k & of Ibn Haldun], who were divided
into the sub-tribes of the B. Mohammad, B. 'All, B. Nizar, and B. Thahlan — in the province of
Behnasa.
1 Orosius i. 2 S 88. 2 Vibius Sequester, p. 36, Magempuri Librae, and Oberlin, ad he . p. 409.
8 S. Lane-Poole, History of Egypt in the Middle Ages, p. 79 sqq., for the Fatimite incursions.
* Ibn Haldun, Kitab el-'Ibar (tr. de Slane), vol. i. p. 231 sq.
5 Cf. Ibid. (Ar. text), vol. i. p. 115 ( = tr. de Slane, vol. i. p. 197 sq.).
6 Ibid. vol. i. p. 232. Abu '1-Mahasin, Annates, p. 85 ; Ibn Abd el-Hakam, p. 302 ; Ibn Abi '1 Dinar, Kitab el-
Munis, p. 23 ; el-Idrisi, Clim. iii. § 1 ; el-Biladuri, Futuh, p. 225 . . "the Luatah Berbers of the country of Barkah "
. ; Ibn el-Atir, Kamil, iii. 20, where it is stated that the Luatah Berbers extended from Barkah to Sus ; cf. Leo
Afric'anus, Africae descriptio, vi. p. 632 = Description of Africa, vol. iii. p. 800, where the Luatah are mentioned as extending
to the east as far as Egypt.
7 Leo Africanus, loc. cit. ; cf. R. Basset, Le Dialecte de Syouah, p. 4.
8 Ibn Haldun, Kitab el-'lbar (tr. de Slane), vol. i. p. 236. According to Ibn Haldun, the Zenatah had been driven
to Barkah from the western Delta. 9 El-Ya'kubl, Descriptio Al Mogrebi, p. 40.
7°
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
The Benu Magdul, J;J>sr« yj in the province of Glzah with part of the B. Thahlan, the
Sakkarah, B. Abu-Kethir, and the B. el-Gelas.
The Benu Hadidi, ^sjs^- y^. tne most powerful Berber element in the Sa'ld.
The Benu Katufah, &J3J Jb comprising the Maghaghah [who by Ibn Haldun were reckoned
descendants of the elder, but not of the younger, Luah], and the Wahllah.
The Benu Barkin, ^j>, ^>-
The Benu Malu, J U JL> •
The Mazurah, *,jj*, comprising the B. Warkan, B. Gheras, B. Gemmaz, B. el-Hakem,
B. Walid, B. el-Haggag, and B. Mahresah.
The Benu Yahyah, "&£2-\ »Ju.
The Benu el-Wasuah, gyj, J! At. 1
The Benu 'Abdah, sj^Urt-
The Benu Mosallah, lilc^ Ju.
The Benu Mohtar, .1U- M Jb.
The last five tribes, el-Makrizi remarks, were mixed with Zenatah, Huarah, etc.,
and were located in the province of Manufiah. None of the above tribes 2 have been
entered on Map XL on the authority of el-Makrizi, since their presence in Egypt
before the Fatimite invasion is uncertain, and is significant only as offering an historical
parallel to the conditions prevailing in New Empire times. 3 ]
3. Mezatah, &)■*. — Mixed Luatah Berbers about Ptolemais in Cyrenaica, 4 and in Wagilah. 5
4. Zenalah, £&:• — Mixed Berbers about Ptolemais ; i perhaps not found in Barkah until after
the Fatimite invasion.
MAP XI
ETHNO-GEOGRAPHYof EASTERN LIBYA.
MODULUS /■J3,550.000
640 AD.
LUATAH M
NEFU5AH ifren \^
£
^-22
<
LUATAH \ J UJATAli
V\ Yr
<
V#
D
\
A
£
HUARAH
«/
^
5. Fezarah, jj )•:. — Ditto;* ditto.
6. Hassak, £!&. — An Arabo-Berber tribe of N.E. Cyrenaica, of uncertain origin. 6
7. Huarah, s,!.» ; Huwarah, l \\. — A great division of the " race of Luah," comprising many
tribes, the bulk of which were to be found in the west. It is probable that in the seventh century
1 The B. el-Wasuah = the Suah, i*m, of El-Ya'kubi (op. cit. p. 4), or the Tisuah, iy»Si , of Ibn Haldun, as R. Basset
{op. cit. p. 4, n. 3) has pointed out. These Luatah are those also who, before the fifteenth century a.d., had caused the
mediaeval name of the classical Ammonium to change from SantaAyah, h jSm, to Siwah, S»j.«i.
2 For which see el-Makrizi, Ueber die in Aegypten eingewanderten arabischen Staemme, p. 33 sq., x. p. 74 sq.
8 Cf. infra, pp. 216, 220, 227. 4 Bl-Idrisi, he. cit. 6 R. Basset, op. cit. p. 4 n. 1. 6 Vide supra, p. 47.
ETHNOLOGY AND ETHNOGEOGRAPHY 71
a.d. their easterly extension ended in the Gebel Gharyan, though later they were found farther
east. 1 A small body of Huarah existed in the vicinity of Leptis Magna (= Lebdah, 5 jj), and
another south of the Syrtis Major. 2
8. Ifren, ^Ji ; Ifuren, ^yo. — A small division of the people of this name, the bulk of whom
were to be found in the west in the vicinity of Tlemsan, was to be found in the eastern part of the
Gebel Gharyan.
9. Nafusah, i^fj. — In the mountains of Tripolitana still called by their name, and still
inhabited by their descendants ; also in small numbers on the sea-coast of Sabrata ( = Sabrak, y^). 8
This ethnic may be related to that of the more prominent tribe of Africa Minor called Nefzawah,
10. B. Kazrun, ^jjS yu- — Near Tripoli Town. A small group not entered on the map.
11. Maghrawah, I^jm. — -A group of these Zenatah Berbers, so strongly seated in the west,
appears to have existed in the seventh century immediately S.W. of (io). 4 The name has been
compared to the ancient Ma^pves, Ma^Xue?, possibly rightly. 6 Not entered in the map.
12. B. Demmer, j^d »i>. — A tribe in the vicinity of the Shott el-Gerid, comprising the sub-
tribes Zuarah, 'i^jj, Urghmah, &+£., } and Urnid, Jai^. 6 Not entered on the map.
A few general deductions may now be made from the maps. It is quite clear that
some of the names to be found on them — e.g. Mazices, Marmaridae — are ethnic names
of a general rather than of a tribal significance, but this does not prevent one's seeing
several important points.
In the first place, the Libyans along the seaboard either got pushed back or ceased
to exist as significant ethnic units, or became fused with extra-African invaders. This
is seen in the decay of the small Cyrenaic tribes, and in the existence of the mixed
Libyphoenices.
Secondly, it may be noted that tribes in the less desirable areas tend to show a sur-
prising degree of ethnic stability ; the Nasamones, for example, continued to maintain
themselves from the days of Herodotus until Byzantine times — i.e. for about a thousand
y ears — within the same area along the East Syrtic littoral. Even the Adyrmachidae,
despite their proximity to Egypt, continued to exist until the time of Ptolemy.
Thirdly, in conjunction with this ethnic stability it is found that the names, if not
the pure stock, of certain tribes survived for very considerable periods. Thus the
Egyptian Esbet appear in classical times as the Asbystae or Asbytae, and the name of the
Egyptian Hes possibly survives to-day, after three thousand years, in the name Hassah,
borne by a group of Arabo-Berbers of Eastern Cyrenaica.
Fourthly, it is evident that the great general movements of the Eastern Libyans as a
whole were anciently in a west-to-easterly direction : the invasion of the Meshwesh was
from the west (Map II.), and in the period preceding the Mohammadan conquests new
peoples like the Ausuriani and the Mazices are seen raiding into Cyrenaica and Egypt
1
E. Mercier, Histoire de retablissement des Arabes dans P Afrique septentrionak, p. 44, and Map 1.
2 Ibn el-Atir, loc. cit. ; el-Idrisi, loc. cit. 3 Ibn el-Adr, loc. cit. ; Ibn Abi '1 Dinar, loc. cit.
* E Mercier, of. cit. p. 45 and Map 1 ; Ibn Haldun, Kitab el-' Bar (Ar. text), vol. i. p. 133, ii. 3+ ( = ». de Slane,
i. p. 2 10, iii. p. 228). 5 But vide su P ra ' 6 4 *■ 8 '
6 E. Mercier, of. cit. p. 47.
72 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
from the south and the west. As will be more evident later, it seems as if in ancient
times any prolonged political weakening in the Nile Valley was the infallible forerunner
of invasions from the west. Even after the Mohammadan conquest of Africa, the old
west-to-easterly movement was repeated in the Fatimite invasions of Egypt, though this
last of a long series of similar movements was counterbalanced by the east-to-west in-
cursion of the Hillal-Ben-Amar and the Soleym-Ben-Mansur in the eleventh century a.d.
The reasons are not far to seek : the Eastern Libyans were not pressed from the Nile,
but from the open oasis country to the westward. The actual cause of pressure
cannot always be stated ; but that, given the opportunity, the Libyan tribesmen should
ever have been ready to install themselves in the fertile and easily tenable Nile Valley
goes without saying.
CHAPTER III
LANGUAGE AND WRITING
Despite the modern prevalence throughout North Africa of Arabic, the language of
conquest and religion, there exist by survival from pre-Islamic times a number of
dialects of that old indigenous Hamitic speech which is called Berber. The Berber-
speaking peoples, as a whole, having never arrived at that stage of civilization in which
they would have fixed their tongue in a literary medium, the number of dialects is large.
Thus is found, with fundamental similarities of syntax and vocabularies, a great variety
among such different branches of Berber as the Zenatah, Shawiah, Tamashek, Zenagah,
etc., and — a corollary to this instability of the language — it is also to be observed that
many loan-words from the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Negroes, and Arabs have
crept into Berber speech.
The origin of the language is problematic. Recently there has arisen a fashion of
speaking of Berber as a " proto-Semitic " tongue, 1 but it is worth while to recall in this
connection that so great a Semiticist as Renan declared that Berber, though having
traits of resemblance to the Semitic languages, is profoundly different from them. 2
These differences are the more important, because one of the most striking peculiarities
of the Semitic languages is the extraordinary likeness of the various branches to each
other, two so remotely separated tongues, for example, as Tigre and Assyrian being
more nearly allied than is any branch of Berber with any branch of Semitic. This
point must be remembered both in connection with the claims of those who call Berber
a " proto-Semitic " language and with a slightly different suggestion, viz. that Berber,
in common with Bisharin, Bega, etc., had a remote Arabian origin. 3 The interesting
attempts which have been made with a view to connecting Berber with Basque i and
with Etruscan 5 are not very conclusive, nor have they at all helped toward the settle-
1 H. Weisgerber, Les B lanes d'Afrique, p. 161.
2 E. Renan, La Societe berbere ; idem, Histoire des langues semitiques, I. ii. p. 8 1 .
3 A. Erman, Agyptische Grammatik, p. I, § I a.
4 L. Geze, De quelques rapports entre les langues berbere et basque ; G. von der Gabelentz, Die Verwandschaft des
Baskischen mit den Berberspracken Nord-Afrikas nachgewiesen.
5 D. G. Brinton, The Ethnologic Affinities of the Ancient Etruscans, P. Am. Ph. S., vol. xxvi. ; On Etruscan and
Libyan Names, ib. vol. xxviii. C. de Vaux, La Langue etrusque, etc., Introd. p. xv. ; Brinton's theories are there summarily
dismissed.
73 L
74 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
ment of the question of the origins of proto-Berber. Still less convincing is the elaborate
essay in which Bertholon has sought to prove that Berber is a fusion of " Illyro-
Pelasgic," " Turso-Pelasgic," and " Phrygian " elements cast in a Semitic mould. 1 Like
the ethnical origin of the Libyans themselves, that of the language they have spoken
since the dawn of history is yet unknown, and all speculation on this head is best set
aside until more evidence has accumulated.
In its general character modern Berber is a very simple language. It is con-
sonantal, and words are mainly formed upon triliteral radicals. There is no definite
article, properly speaking — the word ales (Tamashek), for example, signifies equally "a
man" or "the man," according to the context 2 — this want being partially supplied by
demonstratives. The personal pronoun takes a special form according to whether it is
isolated or affixed, and in the latter case serves to denote possession. The verb has but
one conjugation, and that of the simplest : the verbal theme, composed of one, two,
three, or four radical consonants, 8 at once gives the second person singular masculine of
the imperative. Apart from the imperative, there is but one time, serving alike for past,
present, and future. A number of particles serve, when prefixed to the verb, to denote
whether completed, present, or future action is intended. Thus, in Tamashek, the
triliteral radicale LKeM means " to follow " : elkem-e^, " I have followed " ; ad-elkem-e^
" I shall follow." 4 The persons in the conjugations are regularly marked with prefixes
or with suffixes, or with both. Qualifkative verbs lose a part of the usual marks of
conjugation. The factitive, reciprocal, passive, habitual, etc., senses are imparted to the
verb by adding, externally or internally, special elements to the primitive verbal theme,
and so producing ten separate verbal forms.
The formation of the feminine in nouns is very simply and regularly accomplished
in a manner which serves also to mark a diminutive. The plural is either externally or
internally marked, or both. The adjective follows the noun it qualifies, and is subject
to the same formative laws. Some particles and most of the numerals have been
recently taken over from the Arabic. The construction of phrases is regular ; the verb
stands at the beginning of the sentence, and is followed by the subject and its comple-
ments. In North Africa to-day are some forty Berber dialects to which the above
general remarks are applicable, and which, according to their phonesis, are classed as
" strong " or " weak."
As already stated, Berber being a language unfixed by literary usage, the difference
between the dialects is marked. As the vowel and consonant equivalences they exhibit
are important in the study of the significance of ancient names they are here tabulated.
1 L. Bertholon, Colons de souche europeenne, part ii. ; Origine et formation de la langue berbere.
2 A. Hanoteau, Grammaire de la langue tamackek', p. 28. 8 Rarely five or six.
4 A. Hanoteau, op. cit. p. 56 sqq.
LANGUAGE AND WRITING 75
I. Dentals
D = D. Cf. agellid (Beni Mzab) = agellid (Zuawa), " king " ; anebdu (Zuawa) = anefdu
(Ghadames), "summer"; tenpid (Zuawa) = ten i id (B. Mzab, Tamashek), "thou
hast killed." C
D = T. Cf. id (Zuawa) = it (Bougie), " night."
D = T. Cf. adbir (Ghadames) = itbir (Zuawa), " pigeon."
D = T. Cf. iudef (B. Menaser) = iutef (B. Mzab), " he enters."
T = T. Cf. ten^id (B. Mzab, Tamashek) = ten^id (Zuawa), " thou hast killed " ; teffez
(Tamashek) = teffez (Zuawa), "to be chewing habitually" ; iggat (Tamashek) = ikkat
(Zuawa), " he beats continually."
II. Dentals and Palatals
D = G. Cf. adugil (Ghadames) = agugil (Zuawa), "orphan."
D = G. Cf. agedid (North Tamashek) = agagid (South Tamashek), " bird."
P = G. Cf. admar (Ghadames) = agmar (Shawiah), "horse."
D = Z. Cf. egdem (S. Tamashek) = egzem (Zuawa), " to cut " ; tadevvot (Ghadames) = tazabat
(Tamashek), " ring."
T = S. Cf. tasem (Tamashek) = sasem (Zuawa), "to be jealous habitually."
T = TS. Cf. timimun (S. Tamashek) = tsimimun (S. Tamashek), a place-name.
III. Sibilants
S = S. Cf. esek (Ghadames) = isek (Tamashek), " horn."
S = Z = H. Cf. erges = ergez (both Tamashek), "to walk" ; sund = zund = hund (allTamashek),"as."
S = F. Cf. asulai. (N. Tamashek) = afulap (S. Tamashek), "goat."
IV. Palatals and Sibilants
G = K. Cf. iggat (Tamashek) = ikkat (Zuawa), "he beats continuously."
G = G. Cf. agenna (Tamashek) = agenna (Ghadames), "sky."
K = TS. Cf. ufrik (Zuawa) = ufrits (B. Mzab), " sheep."
K = TS. Cf. nes (B. Menaser) = nek (Zuawa, Tamashek), " I."
G = S. Cf. agellid (Zuawa) = asellid (Ghadames), "king."
G = S. Cf. amagep = amasep (both Tamashek), " a man of the Imushagh."
9 = S. Cf. iped (Zuawa) = esed (Ghadames), " ashes."
i. = K. Cf. nif-per = nekker (both Kabyle), " I slay habitually."
G = Z. Cf. akgun (Zuawa) = akzin (B. Menaser, Shawiah), "dog."
*
V. Palatals and Aspirates, etc.
K = Y. Cf. aksum (Zuawa) = aysum (B. Mzab), " flesh."
GG = YY. Cf. aggur (Zuawa) = aiyur (Tamashek), " moon."
GG = YY. Cf. iggen (B. Mzab, Siwah) = iyen (Tamashek), " one."
G = H. Cf. agugil (Zuawa) = aguhil. (Tamashek), "orphan."
i. = H. Cf. tap at (Tamashek, Kabyle) = tehat (Ghadames), " goat " (fern.).
76 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
VI. Labials
B = W. Cf. taburt (Zuawa) = tuurt (B. Mzab), " door " ; ibbod (Zuawa) = iuut (Bougie),
" he has come."
B = F. Cf. anebdu (Zuawa) = anefdu (Ghadames), "summer."
B = V. Cf. tazabat (Tamashek) = tadevvot (Ghadames), " ring."
H= V. Cf. ehad (Tamashek) = evod (Ghadames), "night."
VII. Liquids
L = R. Cf. almi = armi (both Kabyle), " as far as."
L = D. Cf. ilia (Kabyle) = idda (Marrocan Rif ), " he was " ; elli = eldi (both Kabyle), " to open."
N = M (under influence of following labial). Cf. tanfust (B. Mzab) = tamfust (Tamashek),
" story."
Add
U = G = B (under influence of following u). Cf. u urgaz (Bougie) = g urgaz (Illulen) = b urgaz
(Zuawa), " of the man."
B = Z (by assimilation). Cf. abzug = azzug (both Zuawa), "moisture."
Metathesis is often found. Cf. aifki (Zuawa) = akafai (Tamashek), " milk."
A brief study of the above permutations will convince the reader of the fluid state
of the Berber language as a whole, and of the great difficulties attending any attempt
at making comparisons between the modern vocabulary and the surviving ancient names.
The reader will appreciate also that whereas most of the permutations are well known
in Aryan or Semitic languages, some are rather unusual, e.g. s = f, l^d. 1
It is well to begin the consideration of the language of the Eastern Libyans of
antiquity with the statement that no textual specimens of their speech exist to-day. 2
It is certain, however, for reasons which follow, that their language was a proto-
Berber tongue, which may safely be regarded as the ancestor of the surviving dialects
not only of the Gebel Nafusa, of Ghat, and of Ghadames, but also of the sequestered
communities farther east, as Wagilah, Maradah, Siwah, Garah, and Manshiah el-
'Aguzah in Bahariah Oasis. This hypothesis is supported by the following facts.
I. Place-names and Ethnics with T- Affixes in Eastern Libya
In Berber, the feminine is regularly made from the masculine substantive by the
prefixing of t- and the suffixing of -t, e.g. anhil (masc), " ostrich," fem. tanhilt (Tamashek).
Diminutives, as already noted, are similarly formed. Words of this sort appear frequently
as modern Berber place-names, e.g. T-ua-t, T-uggur-t, T-akrif-t, T-idikel-t, etc. The
final -t, however, is often lost or sibilated, e.g. tes for *test (Tamashek), " cow." Bearing
1 The latter has its parallel in SaKpv — lachryma.
2 But note A. Botti, Manuscrits llbyens. E. Schiaparelli is there said to have found a papyrus containing " Kehek
war-songs in the Libyan language, transcribed in hieratic." Since 1900 no more has been heard of this remarkable
discovery, nor has Dr. Schiaparelli condescended to answer my enquiries concerning it.
LANGUAGE AND WRITING 77
this in mind we may recognize Old Berber feminines or diminutives in the following
East Libyan names of the Graeco-Roman period.
Places.
Tubactis
Talalatus
Tabunte
Tanabrasta
Tabuinatis
Tacape
Tarichiae
Taucheira
Telgae
Thuben
Forms with both prefix and suffix.
Forms which have lost suffix.
Ethnics.
Tapanitae. Both affixes (?).
Tidamenses. Lost or sibilated suffix.
(Stephanus Byzantinus remarks in regard to a number of African ethnics that
-trat, -iSai are favourite Libyan terminations. 1 )
II. Names made on VMZl
In the previous chapter it has been shown how widespread among the modern
Berbers are the various ethnics having this radical as a base. The ancient occurrence in
Eastern Libya of the following names is therefore significant.
Ethnics. Mazices. MaZiC-es.
Maxyes. MaXY-es (£ = U).
Masuchii. MaSuCH-ii (Z = S, £ = x ).
Bassachitae. BaSSaCH-itae (M = B, Z = S, i = % ).
Mazyes. MaZY-es (; =U). C
Places. Masuchis. MaSuCH-is (Z = S, t- = ^).
Mazacila. MaZaC-ila U = C).
III. Comparison of the Place-names of Eastern and Western Libya
It has long been well established that the ancient place-names of Africa Minor —
such, that is, as were not Punic, Greek, or Roman in their origin — were Berber. If,
therefore, a close resemblance between the native names of the west and those of the
east existed in classical times, the inference that proto-Berber was the language of
Africa from Egypt to the Atlantic becomes much heightened. With this in mind, we
may compare the following names : —
In the East. In the West.
Ardan (-is) Ardal (-is)
(Aus-) ufal (Gaza-) ufal (-a)
Darnis Dyrin
Galyba Cilibba ; (Si[c]-) cilibba
1 Stephanus Byzantinus, in verbb. AvTOfj.dXa.Ka, 'Ao-iris, Alyi/iopos et alibi ; cf. idem, in verbb. "A/3cms,
'AyKvpwv et alibi, where these endings are spoken of as " Aethiopian '' or "Egyptian."
7% THE EASTERN LIBYANS
In the East. In the West.
Ger (-as) ; Ger (-eatis) Ger (-gis)
Lac (-ci) Lac (-a)
Magru Macri
Mara (-bina) Mara (-zana)
Minna Mina
Musti Musti
Tamaric (-etum) Tamaric (-ium)
Thagul (-is) Thagur (-a)
Tinci (T. Ausari) Tingi (-s)
Tanabrasta Tenebreste 1
A closer analysis proves indisputably a still more intimate connection than that
indicated by the above list. Some striking differences are seen — e.g. the total absence
in the East of place-names compounded with the initial element Rus- 2 — but these are
due to dialectic variation.
IV. Analysis of various East Libyan Names
If what has thus far been stated be correct — viz. that the evidence points to Old
Berber as the spoken language of Eastern Libya in classical times — the analysis of the
place-names should confirm this thesis. Carelessness and inadequacy of Greek and Latin
transcription render this analysis difficult, yet the following words, upon examination,
appear to be made on, or to contain, roots 3 which survive to-day in a number of
Berber dialects.
Auziqua, Auzius, Ausufal. The initial element Auz- in these names^ which belong to stations
on the great westerly-easterly Libyan coastal route, is made on the radical v UZ, with the sense
"to stop" or "to halt." Cf. jjl (Zenaga), "to halt." Thus, Ausufal =" the desert halt," or
" the high halt," from VUZ (ut supra) and «/FL, as in Jit afel (Zenaga), " high up," and J»l
afel (subst. masc, Zenaga), "desert." (Cf. Ar. Ja»- gebel = both "mountain" and "desert.")
Azu, " the place of assembly," from ^DU or VZU, " to march," " to come together,"
as in .S\ adu (Zuawa, Warsenis, Bougie, Zenaga, etc.), aorist, } &> idu (Tarudant), " to go,"
"to march"; Ijjl ezua, aor. \ i j\ izua (B. Mzab, Rlf, Gerba, etc.), "to go"; and l£.| ezga,
aorist {£-. izga (Zenaga), " to come together."
Ausari (in the name Tinci- or Tingi- Ausari), "old," from x/LSR, "to be old," as in ~«j'
auser (B. Menaser) = ^ ausar (Harakta, Bougie), " to be old." Tinci, Tingi (cf. Tingis) is
derivable from ^/N5 " to s ' av >" as i n j*£ & n %> (Tamashek), "slaughter," " killing," from ijl en£
(Zuawa, etc.), "to kill," "to slay." 4 The full name Tinci Ausari, therefore, would mean
"the old place of slaughter," as we might say "Old Waleness." (Cf. Auser in the west = " Old
Town," as in Arabic %j^ ' ' Aguzah.)
1 O. Bates, Place-names in Eastern Libya, where the above evidence was first presented.
2 Idem, North African Place-names prefixed with Rus-,
3 For the Berber radicals in the remainder of this chapter, see the following : R. Basset, Loqman berbere, part ii. ;
Idem, Etude sur la Zenatia du Mzab, d'Ouargla et de POued Rir' ; E. Masqueray, Dictionnaire francais-touarcg;
S. Biarnay, Le Dialecte berbere d'Ouargla, pp. 309 sqq. Calassanti-Motylinski, Le Dialecte berbere de R'edames. It may be
noted that many Berber words of appearance rather formidable are really formed on very simple roots, e.g. tizemmets
(Tuat), "road," has the biliteral J7M-
4 Cf. C. Tissot, Geographic compar'ee, vol. i. p. 516, for an alternative ; and C. O. Castiglioni, Memoire geographique,
etc., p. 119, for an impossible explanation.
LANGUAGE AND WRITING 79
Darnis (the modern £,* , Dernah), » the mountains," from VDRR, " mountain," as in
Jj<i\ adrar, pi. ^Kjj tfranw (Tamashek, etc.). The town called A^ ws lay at the mouth of
a deep wady, the high walls of which are very conspicuous behind the modern town. Hence the
name, the first R being sacrificed to euphony, as in the transcription ADpov, given by Strabo x as the
native name for the Atlas. Similarly, to Aeppcv 6>o? 2 appears in Marmarica, the word o>? being itself
confirmatory eviden ce. (Cf. in the west the name 'FowrdSeipov s = Rhysaddir 4 = Rusadder, 6 where the
same root, VDRR, is seen prefixed with the element RUS-.) The same radical, with the same loss
of an R, and permutation of N to M, appears in_the ethnic Adyrmachidae ( A8v Pf ia X l8cu)
= " mountain men," from x/DRR {ut supra) and ^KK "to come from," "to be," as in uLJl,
ak, aonst & ika (Zuawa), "to come from," "to be," with M prefix, by which nouns of
agent, circumstance, and habitud e are made from the verbal theme ; 6 *mak = " those who are
from." Hence 'ASvpixa X iSac = s/DRR + M + VKK, idraren-*mak + iStu = Mi ex montibus = " the
mountaineers." (In allusion to the Gebel el-'Akabah ?)
Magru (cf. Macri in the west), "the old," or "great," from v/MlR, "old," "long
established," as in ^UJ atn^ar (Shawia), ".chief," (Zuawa), "old"; ^ ma~ar (B. Menaser),
"to grow great"; j,^ temu^er (Zuawa), "greatness," 7 etc. Hence, Magru = " the chief
place." (Cf. also the ethnic Ma X Xi/e? = Ma^ue? = " the great tribe " ?).
Thagulis (cf. Thagura in the west, and Zagylis in Eastern Libya), "shelter," from JGL,
as in aUlysr" tuguliah (Shawia = Semiticized form), "hut." (Cf. Sudanese J£ or Jjy , and Latin
tugurium.)
Telgae, JLG, "well." Cf. VEg, "well," as in jjl ali^ (Wargla) = " well," "shallow
well."
Tacape, VK.B, "summit." 8 Cf.*/KB as in ^-*>& takabt (Shawia), "mountain-top."
Irasa, JBS>, as in ^1 ers, aorist y» ; i irsu (B. Menaser, B. Mzab, Bougie, etc.), " to descend,"
"to put down"; ^ irsa (Wargla), "a pitch" for tents (^ ers = " to pitch "). Hence, Irasa
= " camping-place," " tenting-place."
The above words may be taken as giving fair specimens of the relationships
between the ancient place-names of classical Eastern Libya and words in daily use
among the modern Berbers. They show, in conjunction with other evidence, that
Berber was the pre-Islamic language of Tripolitana, and add force to the remark of
St. Augustine, who emphasized the great variety of tribes which were to be seen in
North Africa all speaking the same tongue. 9 That Berber, or proto-Berber, was the
language of Eastern Libya not only in Greek and Roman but even in pre-historic times
will be made clear by the ensuing evidence from the Egyptian sources, which confirms
fully the statement of Mela, 10 who says that the Libyans of his day, though Romanized,
preserved a language which had been that of their ancestors.
The Libyans at the time of the great invasions of Egypt used certain ethnic names
that have already been noted as current in later times. There are, moreover, certain
1 Strabo xvii. p. 825. Cf. Pliny v. 1. 2 C. Tissot, op. at. vol. i. p. 386, n. 2.
3 Ptolemy iv. I § 3. 4 Pliny, Hist. Nat. v. 1. 5 I finer. Antonin. p. 5 (Wess. p. 11, 4).
6 E.g. am-eri, " friend," from eri, " to love " ; am-ahar, " companion," from ahar, " to be associated with " (Tamashek).
7 Cf. Gr. fjicyaX-, Lat. magn-. 8 Cf. Lat. caput-.
9 S. Augustinus, De Civitate Dei xvi. 6, in Africa barbaras gentes in una lingua plurimas novimus.
10 Mela i. 8. Cf. Herodotus (ii. 18) who says that the inhabitants of even Marea and Apis spoke a non-Egyptian
language.
80 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Libyan elements in archaic Egyptian, and both these facts tend to show that, while the
ancient Berbers may never have occupied the Nile Valley, they were at least contiguous
to it from a very remote and for a very long period of time. The ethnic names just
mentioned are those of the Meshwesh (^ 3M"|^ ~f\ ^ H2 ^] ^ i)> tne Esbet
(^VIW the Rebu (TJ \) $ i). - d < he B *n i^!,\\ 1 $ !)■ which
in the preceding chapter have been connected with the Mazices (v / MZg), the Asby(s)tae,
the Libyes, and the Bacales respectively. To these ethnics may now be added three
personal names borne by leaders in the invasions and a further note on the ethnic RBW.
MSKN ( TtTtT ^gx «~™ | Wj, personal name, masc. The initial element here, MS, is the
Old Berber filiative Mes-, as seen in such names as Mas-syli, Mas-sasyli, Mas-sinissa, Mas-iva, Mas-
tigas, Mas-timan, etc. The second element «/KN, is easily recognizable as x/GN, " sky," as in
xi.i igenni (Zuawa), "cloud," U?' agenna (B. Mzab, Rif, Tuat), "sky," "heaven." The name,
therefore, means " son of heaven," and occurs in classical times as Misagenes, a name borne
in the west by a son of Masinissa.
KPPUR \{_J n V I I jdfjj personal name, masc. suggests «/KBR, the B being a natural
equivalent of the Egyptian PP. vKBR as in ,U£1 akabbar, pi. ^.U^, ikabbaren (subst. masc,
Zuawa), " claws," " talons." 1 Hence, the name would have the force of " the render."
MRY(U) [ c= ' n <= ^ > & M %! $). The initial element here, MR, is that seen later in the
North African names as Marmaridae, Massamarus, etc. In the Libyan inscriptions of the west it
occurs either free, MR, 2 or reduplicated, MR-MR, 3 or in combination as above, MR-W.
RBW ( Jv|yf ')' ^ n re g ar d to this ethnic name, although its persistence in
Graecized form has already been commented upon, its survival in one particular place-name is
especially curious, and may be here noted. The name is Leptis, the earlier form of which was "Ol^
LBKI = LBU, the U being marked by an equivalent K. The reading "Oib LBKI derived from
the legends of the Punic coins of the city, 4 seems not to have been quite forgotten even in Roman
times ; we have, at least, one inscription giving cirra verna LEPCITANA?
Apart from these and other names connected with the Libyan invasions of Egypt,
there exists a piece of isolated evidence afforded by a stela of Intef I. 6 On this stela the
king is represented with his hunting dogs, the animals bearing foreign names. These names
are transcribed in hieroglyphics, and of the five one is certainly, and another probably, Old
Berber. The certain one is 5 B 3 KR (^ J ^ <==> ^), which represents the Berber n/BKR,
1 J. Halevy, Etudes berberes {Supplement aux Inscriptions libyques), suggested that by L = N this name might be
connected with the ethnic Cabales. I prefer the explanation given above, and the reading Bakales (Herodotus iv. 171).
2 Ibid. Part i. p. 99, No. 1 1 ; p. 188, No. 197. s Ibid. p. 140, No. 100.
4 C. L. Mttller, Numismatique du Nord de P Afrique, vol. ii. p. 10. Leptis was a Sidonian foundation (Sallust, Iugurtha,
78) ; but Semitic philology has not satisfactorily explained the name of the town.
5 L. Renier, Inscriptions No. 425. For K = T cf. P. Schrader, Ph'dnizische Sprache, p. 115 ; C. Abel, Einleitung in ein
agypftsck-semitisch-indoeuropaisches (Vurzelworterbuch, p. 80 sqq., Nos. 71, 72, 76, 77.
6 Dynasty XL R. Basset, Les Chiens du Roi Antef, in Sphinx, vol. i. 1897, pp. 87 sqq., esp. pp. 89-91. M.. Burchardt,
Die altkanaandische Fremdworte . . . in Agyptischen, vol. ii. No. 3. For other literature on this stela (Cairo Museum
No. 20512) vide G. Maspero, Etudes de mythologie et d' archeologic, etc., vol. iii. p. 331 ; idem, RT, vol. xxi. p. 136. In
this last an attempt is made to identify a third name, ^^ }v7?' TKRW, as Berber. G. Daressy, RT, vol. xi. 1889,
Remarques et notes, § xviii. pp. 79, 80.
LANGUAGE AND WRITING
81
as in jfiM abaikur (Tamashek), " greyhound " = )£■>} abekur (Awelimmiden). From
these interesting fragments, however, it is time to turn to a more important considera-
tion — that of the Libyan element in the Egyptian language itself.
It is well recognized that Egyptian, even in the earliest stages at which we know
it, contains a proto-Berber element. 1 This Berber element is of a very deep-rooted
character. Despite the Semitic nature of the Egyptian verb, 2 even that important part
of the language has some features in common with that of the Berber. Both languages,
furthermore, have cognate pronominal radicals, and form their plurals and absolute
pronouns by the same process ; 3 both families form their feminine plurals in a closely
related manner ; 4 in each n is used as a sign of the indirect genitive ; 5 and in both,
abstracts and collectives are treated as grammatical plurals. 6 Besides connection of this
sort, a comparison of the Berber and Egyptian vocabularies shows that the two
languages have in common a number of primitive words. No careful comparison
of the two vocabularies has yet been instituted ; the Marquis de Rochemonteix
did not live to publish the one he projected, and the indifference which Egypt-
ologists and Berber scholars have come to feel so largely toward each other's
researches has discouraged the comparative studies in which de Rochemonteix made
so inspiring a beginning. The citing of the following Egyptian and Berber parallels
may therefore be excused : —
Egyptian.
Berber.
Hieroglyphics.
ffl
Primitive
Roots.
FK
FG(T)
MS
Valu
Primitive
Roots.
to be rewarded."
" reward."
" pay."
" to give birth to."
FK
MG
Examples.
i^Llil offak (Zenaga),
" to give," LLlil efk
• (Zuawa), " to give."
I amag (Zenaga),
" to bear," "to give
birth to.'
€
Megig (Zenaga), "to
be alive." Cf. Old
Berber filiative pre-
fix, MES-.
1 A. Erman, Agyptische Grammatik, p. I, §§ i, ia. 2 Idem, Die Flexion des Sgyptischen Verbums, passim.
3 M. de Rochemonteix, Sur les rapports grammaticaux qui existent entre /' Egyptien et le Berbere, p. 140.
* A. Hanoteau, Grammaire tamachek, p. 17; A. Erman, Agyptische Grammatik, p. 55, § 117.
5 A. Hanoteau, op. cit. pp. 26, 27 ; A. Erman, op. cit. pp. 64, 65, §§ 137-139.
6 A. Hanoteau, op. cit. p. 19 ; A. Erman, op. cit. p. 58, § 123.
M
82
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Egyptian.
Hieroglyphics.
P4
^-
var.
n^[
\ /WWVA
/WW\A
i <=>
1 WWW\
MAAM
AAAA/*A
/WWW
var.
ffl (J
OO 1
o
Primitive
Roots.
MS(K)
MT
BT
BS
BS
SWR
M
Values.
" to pluck off."
" to snatch."
"to die."
" death."
T
T(F)
GS
MSDR
" to go.
" to go into."
" to enter."
" to be drenched."
" to pour out."
" to drink."
" water.
" lake."
" father."
" knife."
" dagger."
ear.
Berber.
Primitive
Roots.
MZ
MT
Examples.
BD
BZ(I)
su
M
T
KS
MZg
„1 ameza (Dubdu),
" to seize," " to take
away." Cf. )jj
amza (War.), "ogre."
(Cf. " Kpirviau, dpird-
' emmet aor.
immet ; (Harakta,
Bougie), " to die ; "
C-oUaJ tammettant
(subst. fern.) (B.
Mzab, Zenaga),
"death." (Cf.Semit.)
j'ol ebbad (Zenaga),
" to arrive."
^J- ebzi (B. Menasir),
" to be drenched."
^_ su, aor. jj.^*> sui £
(B. Mzab, Nafusa,
etc.) " to drink."
^U aman, coll. from
*l» (most dialects),
"water." (Cf. Semi-
tic.)
^ ti (Tamashek),
"father."
(ji^^jfl* tekuset (subst.
fern.) ' (Kabyle),
" knife."
c^jj amezti£ (subst.
masc.) (Zuawa, Rlf,
Harawa, etc.)," ear."
LANGUAGE AND WRITING
83
Egyptian.
Hieroglyphics.
r~ff~l
%S
O
Primitive
Roots.
MS
SR
MSS
MSR
R
N
R
Values.
"lord;" "master."
prince,
chief."
" belt."
" girdle."
evening.
"at; "to; "into ;
" toward."
sign, genit.
sign, emphatic.
Primitive
Roots.
MS
ZR
BSS
MDR
R
N
R
Berber.
Examples.
^w,
mess, (var.)
master.
j]j\ ezzar, aor. j'kj
izzar (B. Menaser),
"to be the first,"
" to precede ; " ; l;l
ezzar (B. Mzab),
" at first," (of time) ;
sj'ij^ amzuaru (Zu-
awa, Harawa), "pre-
ceding," "an-
terior ; " IjljjJ tazu-
ara (subst. fern.)
(Zuawa), " predomi-
nance."
J^) abessi (W. Righ),
" belt," « girdle ; "
il bess, aor. ^^>.
ibessi (Wargla), " to
gird one's self "
(with a belt).
^Dyii^i tamadirt(subst.
fern.) (B. Menaser),
" evening."
(j\ S)j\ ar-{dar) (Shelha),
" at." (The termina-
tive ,\ii or .1^ is
emphatic.)
^ n (most dialects),
sign, genitive.
1^1 (j) {z)-ara (Zenaga),
intensive particle.
The S is not part
of the root.
84 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
The common elements in the Berber and Egyptian vocabularies, 1 of which speci-
mens have just been given, and the striking grammatical similarities of the two
languages mentioned earlier in this chapter, make it clear that the relationship between
the tongues is an intimate one. Just where, geographically, the fusion took place,
whether in the upper or lower valley of the Nile, cannot now be determined ; but
the evidence points to there having been in Eastern Libya a continuity of language
from prehistoric until modern times. Even after so cursory an examination of the facts,
one is justified in supposing that the Berber dialects surviving in the east — in Manshiah
el-'Aghuzah, Siwah, Wagilah, Maradah, etc. — had their origin not in any mediaeval
invasion, but are survivals from the speech of the Eastern Libyans of antiquity. This
being so, a careful study of these eastern dialects would be essential to any further
attempt to reconstruct the language of the Temehu and Tehenu, the Rebu and the
Meshwesh. Unfortunately, material for such investigation has not yet been collected,
and is fast disappearing. Basset, with that genius which has placed him in the foremost
ranks of Berber philologists, has made a painstaking collection of the Siwan words and
paradigms noted by travellers who visited the oasis before 1890, 2 but much still remains
to be done there and in other places.
A brief discussion of the question of writing among the Eastern Libyans may con-
clude this chapter. The materials for studying the problem are exceedingly scanty, and
it may be said at the outset that no Libyan inscriptions comparable to those found in
Algeria and Tunisia have yet been reported from Tripolitana or Western Egypt. 3 That
exploration will eventually bring such documents to light in these regions seems
assured, for an inscription of the usual West Libyan type has been found as far east as
Sinai, 4 groups of Libyan letters, inscribed on rocks, have been recorded in Cyrenaica,
Marmarica, and the Oases, while at several points on the western border of the
Egyptian Delta have been noted traces of inscriptions in what appears to be a local
Libyan script. 5 Ever since the discovery in the seventeenth century of the famous
bilingual of Thugga, 6 speculation has been rife concerning the origin of the North
1 And consequently in Berber and Coptic ; not only in onomatopoetic words such as fipjip, fiofipET ($•)> " to
boil" (cf. «/BR (Lat. v/FER-) in Berber, as j>\ aber B. Mzab), but also in old substantives, such as JL1A.?\T (B.)
JUOpT (M.), " beard " (cf. ^MR(T) in Berber as o^U, mart fern, subst. B. Mzab, W. Righ, Wargla).
2 To the words and paradigms therein contained Captain C. V. Stanley and I have added a fairly large number,
collected in 1910, which I hope shortly to publish.
3 V. Reboud, Recueil d' 'inscriptions (pp. 29, 30, 48, and pi. xx. no. 148), gives as Libyan a curious inscription on a
bilingual (the alternate text Greek, unpublished) agate from Dernah, first reproduced in a notice by V. de Bourville,
Extrait cCune kttre . . . a Mons. Jomard (with plate). This inscription, which is a poor rendering, seemingly from an
original in the Cypriote syllabary, is certainly not Libyan, although P. Berger, Histoire de I'ecriture, p. 325, is not alone
in having repeated Reboud's error.
4 J. Halevy, Etudes berberes, p. 100, inscrip. No. 17.
5 The inscriptions from Gheytah (Vicus Judaeorum) published by W. M. F. Petrie, Hyksos and Israelite Cities, p. 60,
and PI. xlviii. ; idem, Ghizek and Rifeh, p. 44, Addendum to "Hyksos and Israelite Cities" are not Libyan. See
Appendix II. of this study.
6 Phoenician and Libyan. Now in the British Museum. Reproduced in Reboud, of. cit. pis. xviii., xix., nos.
141, 141 bis ; Faidherbe, Inscriptions numidiqu.es, pi. i., no. 1 et alibi.
LANGUAGE AND WRITING 85
African alphabet diversely called " Libyan," "Numidian," " Berber," or "Libyco-Berber,"
and of its descendant, Tifinagh. Interest in this question has recently been stimulated
by the discovery of the early scripts of Crete, and by the indiscretion of those who
recklessly have given phonetic values to the owners' marks occurring on early Egyptian
pottery, etc. In discussing here the origin of the Libyan alphabet it is not, however,
necessary to consider the numerous theories which have recently been woven about it ;
it is enough to say, in regard to these, that no inscription in Libyan characters has
yet been proved older than the fourth century b.c.
The origin of the Libyan alphabet has been variously ascribed to Egyptian, 1 Greek, 2
Vandalic, 3 and Sabaean or Ethiopic 4 sources. These unproved contentions, and that of
Littmann, who endeavoured to connect Libyan with the Thamudenean and Safaitic
scripts of northern Arabia, 5 may be passed over ; and with only slight modifications the
statement put forward by Halevy over thirty years ago may still be accepted. 6 Halevy
compared the Libyan alphabet with those forms of Phoenician found in North Africa.
This comparison resulted in his finding that six out of the thirty Libyan letters had
Phoenician prototypes representing the same sounds, as follows : —
Libyan. Phoenician. Values.
s-A 4 g
Z -V I
U t> M
I I N
W,$ LL/AI/ s
X,+ X T
Halevy, beyond this, suggested that the Libyan forms O, O, and n might be derived
from the respective Phoenician equivalents 9, 9, and A. The Punic 7, f, it may be
added, has sometimes a form approaching that of the Libyan equivalent X- Even if
these latter points be ignored, however, the relationship between the two sets of letters
is not easily to be put by, even though the majority of the Libyan letters without
Phoenician or Punic equivalents forbids the derivation of the Libyan alphabet as a whole
from a Semitic source. That the forms noted by Halevy do not resemble their
Phoenician phonetic equivalents by mere accident, but because of their derivation, is
made yet more certain by the geographical distribution of the Libyan inscriptions.
Although they exist outside of Algeria and Tunisia, it is certainly true that those
1 M. de Saulcy, Observations sur I'alphabet tifinag, in the Journal Asiat., 1849, 4 tn se " es ; vo '- x ">- P- 2 47 m-
2 J. W. Harding King, A Search for the Masked Tawareks, p. 319 sqq.
3 This is obviously invalidated by the Thugga bilingual. Cf. too Valerius Maximus i. 1. 21, Ext. 2, where Masinissa
is said to have inscribed some tusks gentis suae litteris. But perhaps Punic is here intended.
1 O. Blau, Uber das numidische Alphabet.
5 E. Littmann, L'Origine de I'alphabet libyen. This theory, abandoned, I believe, by Littmann himself, is yet held
by W. M. Muller. a J. Hale'vy, op. cit. p. 85.
86 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
regions are richest in these inscriptions — that is to say, they are commonest in those
parts of Africa which were inhabited by sedentary natives living within the Phoenician
sphere. The comparative infrequency of their occurrence outside this area is in itself
an indication of the connection between Libyan and Phoenician writing. The non-
Semitic part of the alphabet is composed mainly of those signs which, from their distri-
bution, might almost be called Mediterranean, and which are seen in the Celtiberian
and Turdetan alphabets of the west, 1 in the Cypriote syllabary, and even in Minoan
Crete. 2 To ascribe to one people or period the origin of the non-Semitic elements
of the Libyan alphabet would be at present extremely rash ; still more rash is the
assumption that when these simple figures occur singly or in groups of but two or three
on pots, etc., they necessarily represent phonetic values. These facts, and the considera-
tion that many of these signs have been in use in at least one portion of Northern
Africa (Lower Egypt) for as long as five thousand years as simple marks of identification,
make it reasonable to suppose that at the time Halevy's letters were taken over by the
Libyans from the Phoenicians a number of simple marks, of a type widely diffused,
were pressed into service to make up the complement of letters necessary to form the
alphabet. The same thing seems to have happened in Spain, where borrowed Greek
and Phoenician letters were used with " promoted " marks to the same ends. This is at
least a supposition which it is easier for science to accept than any theory which would
give phonetic values to the Egyptian pot-marks or to the barred pebbles of Mas
d'Azil; 3 and which would assert that all the Mediterranean scripts were derived from one
parent system, more or less well defined at a period when man could hardly have felt
the need of writing at all. From what has been said it may safely be concluded that
the Libyans borrowed from the Phoenicians a few letters and the idea of writing, and
that they added to the borrowed letters enough owners' marks to make an alphabet,
rude, but suited to their simple needs.
The alphabet thus evolved, as seen on the monuments, consists of thirty letters,
which, with their equivalents as determined by Halevy and Letourneux, 4 are given in
the following table.
1 A. Heiss, Monnaies antiques de l'Espagne,p. 3 sqq. ; D'A. de Jubainville, Celtes d'Espagne, in the Compt. Rend. Acad,
des Inscript., 1890, p. 219 sqq. ; P. Berger, op. cit. p. 335 sqq. The Turdetan alphabet, as far as preserved, is a primitive one,
despite the fact that Strabo assures us (iii. p. 139) that the Turdetani had a written literature.
2 A. J. Evans, Scripta Minoa, vol. i., e.g. pp. 39, 89, and hieroglyphic, Nos. 132, 129, 92, and p. 92.
3 E. Piette, Les Galets calories du Mas d Azil, in Anth. vii. pp. 386 sqq., and Les Ecritures de /'age glyptique, in Anth.
xvi. p. 1 sqq. Amongst the supporters of extremely ancient writing it is not surprising to find G. Sergi, The Mediterranean
Race, p. 296 et alibi.
4 J. Halevy, op. cit. p. 78 ; C. Tissot, op. cit. vol. i. p. 519. In the equivalents given above I would suggest, among
several slight changes, that the absence of the sound P in modern Berber dialects justifies the confining of the value of
X, X to </> or F.
LANGUAGE AND WRITING
87
Libyan.
English.
Horizontal.
Vertical.
Halevy. 1
Letourneux. 1
•
•
A
A
_
1
A
N
1
,^_
N
S
O.D
0,D
R
R
©,□
OS
B
B
^_
M,r,l,A,7,VA
G
G
+,x
+,x
T
T
?
T.J_
' V,U
G
?
•1-,-J-
A( £ )
G
=
III
' A (0
GH(£)
?
—
H
GH(£)
?
mi
H( t )
H
?
=
K(J)
H
=
11
U
U
II
=
L
L
n
C,3
D
D
c
n
S
S
u
u
M
M
?
H,I
U,W
F
>-
>-
T(i)
T
?
>-«•
TS
1
m
TS
m
LU
z
TH, DH
z
*,*.W
1
I
£ £_
1M1
K(^)
K
X,8
X,9,»
tsoo
X
X
X
P, PH, F
p
£
w,^,m
S(B»)
s
3
IHJ
'A (c)
'A
?
c
e
s
Originating in the Punicized regions of Africa Minor, this alphabet became in time
disseminated over a large part of indigenous North Africa, the script of the Guanches of
Canaria being closely allied to it, and the occurrence of a Libyan inscription, as has been
1 Of the two systems, that of Halevy is the more accurate. My own system of transliteration will be found in the
introduction to the Sylloge Inscriptionum Libycarum shortly to be published.
88
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
remarked, having been noted as far east as Sinai. It has, moreover, a modern descendant
in the Tifinagh 1 alphabet, which is still occasionally employed among the Imushagh,
a writing of which traces have been found from the Egyptian oases to the Atlas, and
from the Mediterranean to Lake Chad. This latter alphabet presents some differences
from its prototype, which may be accounted for by the usurpation of characters
unfamiliar to the Imushagh by marks of their own ; or by abbreviations, such
as the regular substitution of • for | or — ; by the influence of Arabic ; and by the
development of double letters (ligatures). The Tifinagh alphabet, as generally
employed by the Imushagh, is here set down for comparison with its Libyan prototype.
Tifinagh (Azgar and Ahaggar).
Name.
Form.
Ta^erit
•
Ieb
m,©
let
+
led
n,A,u
leg
i
Iez
tt
led
A,(T^
Ier
□,o
Ies
□,o
leg
.l.,T
Ie gg
X
Ief
!=!,::
The double letters are
Value.
a, i, u
b
t
d
g
z
d
r
s
g
gg
f
Iebt
+B =
CD and +
= bt
Iezt
n
tt - +
= zt
Iert
a
□ „ +
= rt
lest
-K3 =
□ „ +
St
Iegt
T ■
T „ +
= gt
Iggt
-^ -
X „ +
= ggt
Name.
Form.
Value.
Iel
II
1
Iem
U
m
Ien
1
n
Iek
•:
k
laic
• • •
k'
H
•
i
Ies
3
s
Iah
•
•
h
lad
3
d
Iak
• •
• •
k
Iau
•
•
u, w
ley
$
j> y
Ielt
h-\
II and +
tl
Iemt
43
H „ +
= mt
lent
t
1 „ +
nt
Iek
■Q
a „ +
St
Ienk
T
i „ +
= nk
A comparison of Tifinagh and Libyan shows the following more obvious parallels :
Tifinagh. Value. Libyan. Value. Punic.
a > i> u .,__,! 'a
©•ID b 0iH b
+ l +.X
t
9
X
mutation
i This name may preserve a memory of the Semitic inspiration of the Libyan writing. For iaLJ, tifinai, by
tion of ^ to k, gives a fern, subst. of $otvwc-. Cf. A. H. Keane, Jfrica, vol. i. p. 77, note 1.
the
LANGUAGE AND WRITING 89
Tifinagh. Value. Libyan. Value. Punic.
n a n,c,3 a 9
11
3
1
r
1
m
n
i
Libyan.
Value.
n,c,D
d
o,n
r
11,=
1
H,U
m
1-
n
•1%-ror
=,ll
•111,=
i
u, w
Libyan inscriptions are read from below upward, beginning usually with the right-
hand column, rarely with the left. Very rarely letters are in horizontal lines, to be
read from right to left, as in the Thugga inscription. The derived Tifinagh may be
written to be read -», j, <-, f, or even in a spiral or circle.
Of such remains of Libyan writing as are known in Eastern Libya it may be said
that early in the nineteenth century traces were reported in Marmarica. 1 The following
inscription 2 was the first noted : —
>. A S x s O O o o II 17 +
> A -A- >y V xx= = = = H |0 +
+ R /*>""% // Ol 7/
As copied it cannot be read, and the presumption is strong that one has here a
number of tribal or personal marks, grouped together by the collector, and so published.
Traces of Libyan inscriptions are reported by Hamilton 3 as occurring at Safsaf in Cyrenaica ;
although it is doubtful if these traces are more than masons' marks, since owners' marks,
some of which have the form of Libyan letters, are in use among the modern nomads of
Eastern Libya. 4 Signs of this sort were collected from two columns of a ruin at Hamed
Garushin the Major Syrtis by the British Admiralty Expedition in 1821-1822, 5 together
with the names of the tribes to members of which they belonged. Such signs also
occur in Western Egypt and in the Egyptian oases. 6
The following, collected in 1910 from Marmarica, will serve as examples of
these signs : —
J
nr am ,v o
* > < (b) > M
(a) "j(b) (a) (c) €
1. Near Marsa Matru. 2. Near Sldl Barani. 3. Near Bir el-Kanays.
1 J. A. Scholz, Reise in die Gegend zzvischen Alexandrien und Paratonium, pp. 53, 56, 57 ; J. R. Pacho. Voyage dans la
Marmarique, etc., p. 24. 2 V. Reboud, op. cit. p. 47, and pi. xx. no. 146. After J. H. A. Scholz, locc. citt.
3 J. Hamilton, Wanderings, p. 76.
* V. de Bourville, he. cit. De Bourville remarks that such signs were especially common among those tribes which
have the Berber filiative ool or ol, instead of the Arabic jVjI or jj, before their names. They may be seen in Reboud,
op. cit. pi. xx. no. 147.
5 F. W. and H. W. Beechey, Expedition to . . . the Northern Coast of Africa, p. 161. They had been noted earlier
by P. della Cella.
6 Personal observation in Mariut, about Marsa Matru, and Sidi Barani. The scarcity of these marks at Siwah is
extraordinary, but may be due to the poor stone. They do occur.
9o THE EASTERN LIBYANS
O o = .
(a) (b) (c) (c)
4. Near Bir el-Kanays. 5. Bir es-Stabl (deep cut in mouth of well).
"tt 1 To
'(a) (b) [fa
6. Hattiah Gerbah. 7. Tattooed on hand of an Aulad 'Ali.
Of these curious signs all to some extent, and (3) and (4) especially, recall either the
Libyan or the Tifinagh letters. 1
Were it not for the meagre traces noted above, so much space need hardly have
been devoted to this question of writing. The very scarcity of material, however,
although it is safe to predict that it will be increased by exploration, is significant ; it
tends to show that in classical times the Eastern Libyans were at a lower stage of culture
than were their more sedentary neighbours of the west. Among them the needs of
writing were doubtless fewer than among the more advanced natives in Numidia,
Byzacium, Zeugitana, and Mauretania Caesariensis. While in the latter areas it was
not uncommon to inscribe tombstones with simple epitaphs giving the name of the
deceased, in the east, but for the Sinai inscription twice referred to above and due
probably to some wandering caravaneer, and but for the Libyan letters signalized by
modern travellers as being of general occurrence in Cyrenaica, Marmarica, and the
Oases, it might well have been doubted whether in ancient times the Eastern Libyans
ever possessed a knowledge of the art of writing.
From earliest times, it may be said by way of summary, there has been a continuity
of Berber speech in Eastern Libya, now represented by the disappearing " strong "
dialects of Siwah, Manshiah el-'Aguzah, Garah, etc. ; the Eastern Libyans can be shown,
on linguistic grounds, to have been in contact with the inhabitants of the Nile Valley
at a very early period ; and they had at a late period some knowledge of the Libyan
script which was developed in the west, and from which the writing of the Imushagh
takes its origin.
1 Some of these signs, it is but fair to state, seem to approximate those of the late North Semitic alphabets rather than
the Libyan. Especially is this the case with No. 5.
CHAPTER IV
ECONOMICS
In the discussion of the relation of man to his environment in Eastern Libya at the
present time, something has been said of the dependence of the nomadic population on
the permanently inhabited centres. The present conditions seem to reflect with fair
accuracy those which existed anciently, despite the Herodotean characterization of the
whole country as "nomadic." 1 At all events, the degree of nomadism was not, like
that prevailing among the Romanies of mediaeval Europe or the Solubbi of modern
Arabia, quite unrestricted, for it has been shown in the chapter on ethnogeography
that the Libyan tribes had fairly well defined boundaries. The Egyptianized
Adyrmachidae, 2 the Hellenized Asbystae 3 and Auschisae, 4 and the Bacales, 5 therefore,
could have been nomads only in a limited sense. This is true to an extent even greater
of that remarkably stable ethnic group, the Nasamones. These last-named people may
be taken as typical ; they had their main seat on the Syrtic shore, where they left their
herds in summer, while they themselves went up-country to Augila for the date crop. 6
Similarly, the Aulad 'All of western Egypt at the present day leave the coast after
sowing their crops in the autumn, and return to their harvest and pasturage in the spring.
The Macae, unlike the Nasamones or the Aulad 'All, frequented the littoral during
the rains. In winter they lived along-shore, their flocks being confined in pens ; but in
summer, when there was scarcity of water in the sandy coastal zone, they moved away
from the sea into the midlands — presumably into the fertile Gebel Gharyan. 7 The
nomadism of the Psylli must have been restricted, since they had permanent wells, 8 and
the wanderings of part at least of the " Lotophagi " could not have been very extensive,
since they were circumscribed by the confines of a peninsula so small as that of Zuchis. 9
The Machlyes and Auseans both inhabited the region contiguous to Lake Tritonis, 10
where the latter held a yearly festival that began with a procession around the lake. 11
1 Herodotus iv. 186 et alibi. 2 Ibid. iv. 168. 3 Ibid. iv. 170.
i Ibid. iv. 171. b Ibid. loc. cit. 6 Ibid. iv. 172, 182.
7 Scylax § 109, irapa. rrjv 'SvpTiv p-ixpi tou a-rd^a-ros rfjs 2-u/mSos irapoiKovvTts oi MaKai x ct / x( *C 0WU ' "™ daX6.TTij
to, /3o(TKrjfiaTa K\,eiovTes, tov Se Oepovs, VTrei<\enr6vT0)v t£>v vSoltuv, a.Tre\avvov(Ti ra /Joo-Kij/xara els //ecroyaiav avu> p.e9'
8 Herodotus iv. 173. 9 Ibid. iv. 177. 10 Ibid. iv. 180. n Ibid. loc. cit.
91
92 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
This festival was primarily a tribal one, and not of a general character, as, for example,
that of the great Moslem Moled of Tantah, or that of the Easter Flame at the Holy
Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The participants, therefore, like most, if not all, the littoral
tribes, were not nomadic in the widest sense of the term. There existed, also, far in
the interior, such purely native towns as Garama, Cydamus, Boin, etc., and permanent
oasis-settlements in which the indigenes, like those of Siwah and Wagilah at the present
time, dwelt in houses built of mud and rock-salt. 1 In fine, despite the distinction of
Herodotus, who says that to the west of Lake Tritonis live the sedentary agricultural
Libyans, 2 it appears that the Eastern Libyans, at least those of the littoral zone, 3 were
mostly confined to small areas, and had within their boundaries either permanent centres
or regular places of resort according to the seasons. Probably the bulk of the people
lived in a state which is to-day paralleled by that of certain Bedawin in Syria, There,
at 'Arak el-Emir, the Arabs have houses in which, during the winter months, they
dwell as cultivators ; in the summer they wander about, living in tents, as graziers. The
case is a suggestive one, since these Bedawin were, a generation ago, purely nomadic. 4
It was in the barren interior, if at all, that tribes anciently existed in a condition
completely nomadic. The Gamphasantians are located by Herodotus only in general
terms, as being " above the Nasamones " in the south. 5 In those regions tribes probably
moved from place to place as do the modern " followers of the rain " in the deserts between
the Nile and the Red Sea. Sine tectis ac sedentibus, says Mela, speaking of the desert
Libyans, passim vagi habent potius terras quam habitant* The same writer, in terms
which admirably characterize the free nomadic state, says of the up-country Libyans :
Inter tores incultius etiam secuntur vagi pecora, utque a pabulo ducta sunt it a se ac tuguria
sua permovent, atque ubi dies deficit ibi noctem agunt. 1
The reason for the difference between the nomadic habits of the coast-wise and of
the up-country tribes is obvious : where a regular rainfall and suitable soil encouraged
agriculture, the Libyan forsook his wandering life to take advantage of these conditions ;
elsewhere, he perforce remained in a nomadic state.
It is instructive to note the cultural stages which the Eastern Libyans may be seen
to have passed through in historic times. In the XlXth to XXth Dynasties they were
still capable of relapsing into a semi-migratory state, the impulse which caused
the great invasions of that period seeming to have been due to a racial pressure in
the Moghreb. A thousand years later, in the times of Herodotus, the migrations
have been stilled ; limited nomads occupy the arable coastal lands, and the less fortunate
1 Pliny v. 5, Domos sale montibus suis exciso, ecu lapide, construunt. - Herodotus iv. 1 86, 187, log et alibi.
3 Even the Gaetulians had their permanent centres, if Vergil's phrase, Gaetulae urbes {Aen. iv. 42), is to be admitted
as evidence.
4 G. A. Smith, note in Palestine Exploration Fund Quarterly Statement, xxxvii. (Oct. 1905), p. 287.
5 Herodotus iv. 174. Vide supra, p. 53. 6 Mela i. 4.
7 Ibid. 1. 8. Yet even a people like the Garamantes seem to have had regular seasonal movements. For they were
wont, about the winter solstice, to go into the remoter parts of the interior for the hunting, after which they returned
(Lucian, De dipsadibus, § 2).
ECONOMICS 93
tribes wander vaguely about the interior. Less than a thousand years later, the East
Libyans of the littoral had largely settled down as town-dwellers ; Marmarica,
Cyrenaica, and the Syrtica Regio are dotted with towns bearing native names — Getullu,
Auzui, Tinci Ausari, Zygris, etc., etc. But the lean and hungry tribesmen of the
desert, now that their northern kinsmen have left their hardy semi-nomadic life to grow
soft in sedentary communities, fall in upon them and harry their lands. The Ausurians
overrun the Pentapolis, but before they can themselves become sedentary villagers,
the Mohammadan Arabs launch themselves across North Africa and deprive the nomads
of those lands in which they could have developed into settled tillers of the soil.
The first economic factor to be considered with regard to the Eastern Libyans
after this glance at the general conditions under which they lived is hunting. Wild
animals were fairly plentiful along the northern confines of the desert, 1 and the pursuit
and capture of game had an origin, of course, much earlier than that of herding cattle,
the cultivation of the soil, or the practice of trade by barter. There has already been
given a brief outline of the physiography, the Fauna, and the Flora of the country, to
which in the present chapter only a few details need be added. The main outlines may
be found in the opening chapter of this monograph.
Herodotus remarks 2 that in the regions occupied by the nomads were to be found
" antelopes, gazelles, buffaloes, and asses, not of the horned sort, but of a kind that
needs not to drink ; also oryxes . . . nigh the bigness of an ox ; foxes, hyaenas, and
porcupines, wild rams, dictyes, 2, jackals, panthers, boryes? land crocodiles, 5 about
the length of three cubits, very like lizards, ostriches, and little snakes, each with a
single horn." 6 There was, in fact, a fair variety of game in Eastern Libya, though the
stag and the wild boar, the latter of which was known in Africa Minor, were not found. 7
With these animals inhabiting their country, it is not a matter of surprise to learn
that the Libyans used the skins of wild beasts, as well as those of domestic cattle, for
clothing, 8 nor to find that, in the XVIIIth Dynasty, 9 the " tribute " — " plunder " would
perhaps be a better word — taken by Queen Hatshepsut from the Tehenu contained
" many panther skins of five cubits along the back and four cubits wide." 10 Further-
1 Herodotus ii. 32, where it is said that "Libya is full of wild beasts" above the littoral zone. Hence this
district is characterized by Herodotus as 17 At/3vr] d-qpM&rjS. From a passage of Lucian {De dipsadibus, § 2) it appears that
hunting was carried on in the winter even in the far interior. The Greek rhetorician, drawing apparently on a good source,
states that the Garamantes "live mainly by the chase." 2 Ibid. iv. 192. s Ai'ktws, unknown animal.
4 Bopves, unknown animal. 5 The monitor lizards, which occur also in Nubia. ° Cerastes horridus (?).
7 Herodotus, he. cit. The historian is wrong as regards boars : until a few years ago they existed in the Delta and
in the Fayum, and they are credibly reported to be still extant in the reedy shott or the Wady Magharah. Despite Moslem
proscription the boar is eaten by the Berbers of the Atlas (A. H. Keane, Africa, vol. i. p. 81).
8 Mela i. 8 ; Strabo xvii. p. 828 ; Aelian, Hist. Anim. xiv. 16 ; cf. Hippocrates, De morbis, ii. p. 375.
9 This must be regarded as the earliest evidence on Libyan hunting. L. Heuzey, Tribu asiatique en expedition, plates
iv. and v., and Maspero, The Struggle of the Nations, p. 767, reproduce an archaic Egyptian slate fragment which the latter
writer entitles " A Troop of Libyans Hunting." But the figures are Egyptians, wearing the kilt and having curly hair,
and using a type of bow seen on one of the Hieraconpolis vases (J. E. Quibell, Hierakonpolis, part i. plate xix. fig. 1 ;
cf. ibid, part ii. plate xxviii.). The latter representation, on the verso of the smaller Hieraconpolis palette, though
non-Libyan, affords an interesting parallel to the Teli-Sagha glyph described p. 94.
10 BAR ii. § 321; cf. W. M. Muller, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. p. 135 and note 2. The same tribute
94
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Fig. 5.
more, the great use of ostrich plumes among the Libyans as personal ornaments must
have necessitated the incessant hunting of the bird, unless it is to be supposed, without
other evidence, that the Libyans succeeded in domesticating it. 1
Only two pieces of testimony, but those of a very interesting sort, have been
preserved in regard to the actual methods employed by the Libyans in the chase. The
evidence in question exists at Teli-Sagha in Fezzan, where the
explorer Barth found and copied some pre-historic rock-glyphs, over
fifty years ago. 2 One of these drawings, here reproduced in Fig. 5,
shows a large animal of some sort apparently walking into a snare
or pitfall. Were it not that most desert animals do not drink,
but get what moisture they need with their food, it might be
thought that the glyph represented an onager or similar beast at water. At all
events, Barth's curious explanation that the drawing shows ein Kind . . . das durch
ein Kreis oder Ring springt 3 is scarcely acceptable.
A second scene (Fig. 6) is of far greater interest, and capable of definite explanation.
It is cut on a block fallen from a cliff-face, 4 measuring about 1*20 m. by 90 cm.
Barth was at great pains to relate this
monument to Egyptian mythology or to
the " Garamantic Apollo," but its real
significance is much simpler. In the
centre, between the two other figures, is a
buffalo. His position, a little higher up
than that of the other figures, and his
small size, may be meant to indicate, by
one of the most universal conventions of
primitive art, that he is in the " middle
distance " of the scene. From left and
right approach the hunters. The one on
the left wears a skin, which, as he advances
running with his arrow already fitted to the string, blows out behind him. On his
head he wears the head of a gazelle with the horns still attached. 5 The other
hunter is wearing the skin and mask of what appears to be a doe-gazelle. He holds
before him a bow 6 with which he has just shot the quarry, which faces him.
contained also "ivory and 700 tusks." This might lead to the supposition that the panther-skins were traded from the
south, but the language of the obelisk inscription published by Mtlller makes this improbable.
1 The only possible evidence of domestication is the appearance of .ostrich eggs among other Libyan tribute in a
Tell el-Amarna painting (N. de G. Davies, The Rock Tombs of El Amarna, vol. ii. PI. lx.), but this is not conclusive.
(The eggs were probably blown, like those occasionally found in the pre-dynastic Egyptian graves.)
2 H. Barth, Reisen und Entdeckungen, vol. i. p. 210 sqq. 3 Ibid. p. 216 and cut.
* Ibid. pp. 209-210 for the general position of the glyphs, and the coloured plate facing p. 210. For the scene
shown in fig. 6, p. 210 sqq.
5 The horns suggest Gazella donas. 6 Qr a shield at which the buffalo charges (?).
Fig. 6.
ECONOMICS
95
Fig. 7.
What Barth, therefore, mistook for a religious representation is in reality a hunting
scene. Such pictures are very numerous in primitive art, and the practice of hunting
in animal disguise has many parallels. 1
A third glyph at Teli-Sagha (Fig. 7) shows a herd of wild cattle 2 in a naturalistic
manner. Despite the scantiness of the evidence, both the nature of it and the conditions
under which the Libyans lived assure us
that the ancient- inhabitants of the country
were capable and practised hunters.
Passing from the question of hunting to
that of the domestication of animals, one
enters a field of Libyan economics concerning
which more evidence exists. The herds and
flocks of the Eastern Libyans — at least of the
more nomadic element among them — formed at an early period their principal wealth, 3
and as far back as the Vth Dynasty evidence exists of their having been breeders of
cattle. In the Romance of Sinuhe, a tale of the Xllth Dynasty, Sesostris, in his cam-
paign against the Libyans, is said to have taken —
Living cattle of the Libyans,
And all cattle without limit. 4
Merneptah took at one time as many as 1308 head of cattle from the camp of the
invading Libyans, 5 and the Papyrus Harris boastfully states that Rameses III. spoiled
the Libyans of " cattle in number like hundred-thousands." 6 In classical times, it was
generally known that at least part of Eastern Libya was rich in flocks and herds, 7 the
earliest Greek notice being found in the Odyssey —
koI Al/3w]v, I'va t apves a<j>ap Kcpaol TeXWovaiv.
rpls yap tlktu p.rj\.a TeA.«r<£opov as iviavrov.
The earliest evidence as to Libyan cattle is that afforded by the Vth Dynasty
relief showing the Tehenu suppliant to Sa-hu-re. 9 The four middle registers of that
monument contain reliefs of kine with long horns (top), two droves of asses (next to top),
and two of goats (bottom two). All these animals are mentioned in the Egyptian
notices of the New Empire ; goats, for example, formed part of the booty taken by
1 J. Deniker, The Races of Man, p. 189. Cf. the human figure dressed in a jackal's skin and playing a pipe on the
smaller Hieraconpolis palette (J. E. Quibell, op. cit. part ii. plate xxviii.). It is regrettable that R. Basset, a great
scholar, has repeated, in his Recherches sur la religion des Berberes, p. 12, Barth's error in regard to this glyph to the extent
of seeing Egyptian influence in these drawings.
2 For the existence of such there is proof in several notices : e.g. Aelian, De natura animalium, xiv. 11,... kgu
etcrtv &KUTT01. ol ay/3104 T€ /cat iXivdepoi. . .
3 Mela i. 8, . . . solum opimum. 4 BAR i. § 492. 5 BAR iii. § 589. 6 BAR iv. § 405.
7 Arrian, Indica, cap. ult. ; idem, Anabasis, iii. 28.
s Homer, Odyss. iv. 85 sq. Cf. Dio Chrysostomus, Orat. lxiv. De Fortuna, vol. ii. p. 333.
9 L. Borchardt, Das Grabdenkmal des Konig S'aliu-Re c , vol. i. figs. 11, 12. The former figure shows the whole relief,
the latter a portion of the middle registers.
96 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Merneptah, 1 and appear earlier in the Libyan tribute shown in a Xllth Dynasty tomb-
painting at Beni Hasan. 2 The Libyan women used goatskins for garments, 3 and these
animals are mentioned by at least two Greek writers in connection with Cyrenaica. 4
Oxen were captured from the Libyans by Merneptah 5 and by Rameses III. 6 According
to several classical writers, the tribesmen of the interior had a breed of oxen which,
on account of their long curved horns, had to graze backwards, 7 although otherwise
they were like ordinary cattle, except for the hardness and thickness of their hides. 8
Whether this were the case or not, the Egyptian evidence for the presence of large,
long-horned cattle is conclusive, and is not unsupported by other classical testimony. 9
Sheep, although not specifically mentioned in the Egyptian lists, or seen on the
monuments, were numerous in Eastern Libya. Strabo mentions their existence in the
interior, 10 and the Homeric passage which testifies to the fitness of the country for
sheep-breeding has already been cited. The epithet ^Xot-joo^o? was applied to Libya by
the Delphic oracle, 11 and in Byzantine times sheep were still plentiful in the country. 12
Asses, which appear in the Sa-hu-re relief, were also taken from the Libyans in
the XlXth Dynasty. 13 If they were of the same breed as those found to-day in Umm
es-Soghayr and Siwah Oasis, they were of a very good sort.
The horse was unknown until its introduction from Egypt. The earliest notice
of the horse in North Africa occurs in the reign of Merneptah. That Pharaoh
captured " horses which bore the fallen Chief of Libya and the children of the Chief
of Libya, carried off alive, pairs . . . twelve." 14 But although unknown in early
times, the horse became very common throughout Northern Africa, even before the
introduction of the camel, which soon followed. In the second Libyan war of
Rameses III., 183 horses and asses were taken by the Egyptians, 15 and by classical
times the horse had come to be so extensively used as to be employed in the interior
and far west. 16 " The breeding of horses," says Strabo, " is most carefully attended to
by the kings " (of the interior) : " so much so, that the number of colts yearly is
calculated at one hundred thousand." 17 Herodotus mentions the horses of the Asbystae, 18
1 BAR iii. §§ 584, 589. 2 P. E. Newberry, Beni Hasan, part i. plate xlvii.
3 Herodotus iv. 189. Cf. ibid. iv. 187 ; Oribasius, Collect. Medic, xlv. for the medicinal use of the stale of goats
in Libya. 4 Pausanias ii. 26, 29 ; Synesius, Epist. cxlvii. pp. 285-6.
5 BAR iii. § 584. 6 BARiv. § in. The list gives 1 19 ( + x) bulls.
7 Herodotus iv. 183. No modern traveller has reported such cattle in Africa. There are, however, several
ancient notices of them outside Herodotus. E.g. Alexander Mynd. ap. Athenaeum v. 20, p. 221 e ; Pliny viii. 45 ;
Mela i. 8. It is probable that this story originated from the sight of long-horned cattle grazing backward, the fanciful
explanation being a later addition.
8 Cf. F. Hornemann, Journal of . . . Travels from Cairo to Mourzouk, p. 127.
9 Synesius, he. cit. ; Hermippus ap. Athenaeum i. 49. Cows were not eaten, but their milk was probably used,
Herodotus iv. 186. The natives of the Upper Senegal, entertaining for their herds that religious sentiment which so fre-
quently develops among a pastoral people, only eat such of their cattle as have died from natural causes. Cf. M. Park,
Travels in the Interior of Africa, p. 312. Similarly, though a cow-taboo exists among the Nuers of the Bahr el-Ghazal
great use is made of cattle. Cf. O. Bates, Sudanese Notes in CSJ, vol. vi. No. 69, p. 135 sag.
10 Strabo xvii. p. 835. n Ap. Herodotum iv. 155. 12 Synesius, Epist. 147, pp. 285-6 ; Castast. p. 301
ib BAR iii. § 584. • 1* BAR iii. § 589. is BAR iv. § 1 n.
16 E.g. as among the Pharusii, Strabo xvii. p. 828. 17 Strabo xvii. p. 835. is Herodotus iv. 170.
ECONOMICS 97
and the extremely high estimation in which Cyrenaic horses were held by the Greeks
is proved by the epithets used for the country. Cyrene, or Cyrenaica, receives such
titles as eut7T7ro? ; t7T7roT/3o</>o9 apicTTT) ; 2 i7T7ro/3oTo? ; 3 /caXt7T7ro?. 4 That the classical world
recognized the good horsemanship not only of the Theran colonists in Africa, but of the
indigenes as well, is amply indicated. The classical reader will recall the
Aleve's ^vyturdv dp/xaTcov liruTTarai.
of Sophocles, 5 and Lucan's
. . . semper paratus
Inculto Gaetulus equo . . . 6
The " horses," it should be said, were little more than ponies, but tough, wiry, and
fleet. 7 They were often so well schooled as to follow their masters like dogs. 8 They
were ridden without saddles, 9 and usually even without bridles, being guided by a
light wand. 10 Though in some few cases bridles of rushes were employed, 11 the only
trapping which seems to have been in general use was a neck-stall of plaited fibre,
■jrepiTpa-xfi^a %vKbva, from which depended a leading-rein. 12
The importance of the horse, of course, must have declined to some extent
after the introduction of the camel — at least in the more desert places. The
camel, as has been said, appears for the first time in African history during the
Saitic period in Egypt. As early, at the latest, as the fourth century B.C., camels
were known in Marmarica, and by Roman times they were common throughout
Eastern Libya. 13
Of other domestic animals it remains only to mention dogs and bees. The former
were probably, as at the present time, to be found in every encamp-
ment in North Africa. The occurrence of a representation of dogs
on a stela of the Xlth Dynasty has been mentioned in the preceding
chapter, where it was remarked that one, perhaps two, of the animals
have their names written in proto- Berber. One of the dogs in
question is shown in Fig. 8, and the fact that at the present time
animals of his breed are used for coursing small game leaves no reasonable doubt
that the " hound " was a hunting dog.
1 Pindar, Pyth. iv. z ; Callimachus ap. Strabonem x. p. 484, xvii. p. 837 ; Dionysius, Periegesis, 213.
2 Dionysius, Perieg. 213. 3 Oppian, Cynegetica, ii. 263. 4 Nicephorus Blemmyda, p. 407.
5 Sophocles, Electra, 702. 6 Lucan, Pharsalia, iv. 677 sq. 7 Strabo xvii. p. 828. s Ibid. loc. cit.
9 Strabo xvii. p. 828 ; Lucan iv. 663 sq. —
Et quis nudo residens Massylia dorso
Ora levi flectit frenorum nescia virga.
Cf. ibid. iv. 677, Inculto . . . equo.
10 Strabo, loc. cit.; Lucan, loc. cit.; Silius Italicus, Punka, i. 215 sqq. ; Caesar, De bello Jfricano, lx\. ; Claudian,
Nilus 20 ; idem, Laus Stilichonis, i. 249.
11 Strabo loc. cit. 13 Ibid. loc. cit. ; Aelian, De natura animalium, xiv. 10.
13 Cf. the early Roman coin of Cyrene showing a camel on the reverse : C. L. Miiller, Numismatique, etc., vol. i. p. 1 54,
No. 391 ; a Roman relief, said to have come from Darfur, but almost certainly from Tripoli, now in Constantinople ;
Synesius, Epist. 130, . . . rots irAetotrtv rj[),Q>v to irXovreiv iv fSoa'K-ijjj.ao-iv -qv, kv dyeXaiais KaprjAois, ev tWois <^0/o/3acrt
O
98 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Bees were probably cultivated, at least by the sedentaries, from an early period,
if weight is to be attached to the Greek legends of Aristaeus. That the Gyzantes
were bee-keepers is expressly stated by Herodotus, who adds that this tribe also
prepared an artificial honey. 1
It may be said in conclusion that while the less civilized portion of the people
would be likely to give more heed to their herds, since the sedentaries were less
dependent upon them than the nomads, the Eastern Libyans seem in general to have
been well supplied with domestic animals, and to have shown intelligence and industry
in breeding and raising them.
That such of the Eastern Libyans as were fortunate enough to possess themselves
of the more fertile portions of the country should become agriculturalists at an early
period was but the natural result of the richness of the soil. The region about the Cinyps
was, according to Herodotus, equal to any in the world for the growing of grain,
the yields being as great as those of Babylonia. 2 The vicinity of Euhesperis was also
good for cereals, one hundredfold being obtained in the best years. 3 Of Cyrenaica
Herodotus truly writes that a crop was reaped yearly at successive seasons from the
lowest, the middle, and the highest levels respectively. 4
The earliest notices of Libyan agriculture belong to the XlXth Dynasty. At that
time the Pharaoh Merneptah was recorded to have taken " every herb that came
forth from their \scil. the Libyans'] fields," so that " no field grew to keep alive "
the inhabitants. 5 That some of the fields bore cereals is indicated by the statement
that " the grain of his [the Libyan chieftain's] supplies was plundered." 6
In the classical period, the fertile Cyrenaica was almost entirely under Greek
or Graeco-Libyan dominion ; the Cinyps region was Punic. Something is known,
however, of native agriculture outside of these regions. Thus, as has been said, the
Nasamones used annually to go up to the coast of Augila for dates ; and the inhabitants
of Ammonium and the other oases must, almost from the beginning, have been
cultivators. 7 Herodotus observed that in northern Phazania the Garamantes covered
salty earth with loam, and then sowed it. 8 Grapes were probably grown anciently,
as to-day, in various parts of Eastern Libya, as in Marmarica, which attained to an
unenviable reputation for the badness of its wine ; 9 and in the isle of Cyraunis, where the
ktA. ; Victor Vitensis, Historia persecutions, etc. i. ; Procopius, De hello Vandal, i. 8. 10 and -passim; Corippus, Johannis
ii. 91 sqq., iv. 597, 995, 1021, 1065, 1133 sqq., v. 83 sq., 194 sqq., vi. 236, 341 sqq. ; Ammianus Marcellinus xviii.
6. 5 and 6 ; and supra, p. 16 sq.
1 Herodotus iv. 194 ; Eudoxus Cnidius ap. Apollonium Dyscolum, xxxviii.
2 Ibid. iv. 198. Three hundredfold ! 3 Ibid. he. cit.
4 Ibid. iv. 199 ; cf. J. R. Pacho, Voyage dans la Marmarique, la Cyrena'ique, etc., p. 235 sq. ; J. Hamilton Wanderings
p. 124.
5 BAR iii. § 598. In the Athribis Stela ; cf. iii. 611 ad fin. 6 BAR iii. § 610.
7 Cf. Lucan iv. 334, where he says —
. . . qua nudi
Garamantes arant ; . . .
and later (ix. 450) places the Garamantes in the oases.
8 Cf. G. F. Lyon, Travels, p. 271, for the preparation of the sandy soil of Fezzan. 9 Strabo xvii. p. 790.
ECONOMICS 99
vine was cultivated together with the olive. 1 The Lotophagi, who so extensively used
the fruit of the Rhamnus zizyphus (L. = R. nabeca, Forsk.), or some such tree, must be
regarded as partially agricultural, even if they did not actually plant these trees and culti-
vate them ; since they were so dependent on the lotus fruit for food that Herodotus
affirmed that some of them lived upon it exclusively, and that they prepared from it a
sort of wine. 2 It is to some such drink, probably, that Mela refers when he speaks of
a succus bacarum as a Libyan beverage ; unless bacae is here to be understood as meaning
" dates," in which case a mild intoxicant like lakbi would be intended. 3
For the widespread cultivation of the olive in Tripolitana in Graeco-Roman times
abundant archaeological evidence exists in the numerous ruined presses of the torcular
type still to be seen in the country. Herodotus mentions the culture of the olive in
the Isle of Cyraunis, 4 and throughout the suitable portions of the African Pentapolis
to-day the traveller sees numerous olive-trees, perhaps self-sown from those of a pre-
Islamic period.
Of the date-palm something has been said in the chapter on physiography. It
remains to add that not only was the fruit used as food by the Libyans, but the fibres
served for the making of cords, 5 and a wine called caryotis («a/3w»Tt?) by Pliny, and
described as being capiti inimical was prepared from the fruit.
Little as can be gleaned in regard to the present question from classical writers,
it suffices to show that the statement of Herodotus to the effect that the nomadic
Libyans between Egypt and Tritonis lived on milk and flesh, 7 and his implication that
only to the west of the latter place were the indigenes tillers of the soil, 8 are to be
taken, even on his own showing, with considerable modification. Probably of old as
at the present day, the inhabitants of Eastern Libya who occupied good arable lands
were largely agricultural ; those with poorer fields sowed them and left them till
the time of harvest ; 9 while those who could call no arable lands their own wandered
about as graziers in the interior.
From a consideration of these questions of the chase, of herding, and of agriculture,
one derives some knowledge of the alimentation of the Eastern Libyans — a subject of
so much importance both from the economic and the cultural point of view as to
warrant its discussion.
At the present time, the principal articles of diet in the interior are various messes
of grain, flaps of bread, dates, figs, raisins, and such wild fruits as are edible, onions,
tomatoes, cucumbers, melons, etc., and a number of wild plants. For meat, the flesh
1 Herodotus iv. 195 ; C. Tissot, Geographic comparie, vol. i. p. 302 sqq.
2 Herodotus iv. 177 ; cf. Strabo xvii. 3. 3 ; Scylax, §110, where it is said of the Extra-Syrtic Lotophagi . . . A.coi-<£
XjOwvtcu cr'nii. ko.1 7totu>.
3 Mela i. 8. 4 Herodotus iv. 195.
5 Pliny xiii. 3, nunc adfunes vitiliumque nexus et capitum levia umbracula jinduntur. Cf. ibid. xvi. 24.
6 Pliny xiii. 4. 7 Herodotus iv. 186. 8 Ibid. iv. 191.
9 Like the Aulad 'Ali to-day. The actual process of sowing was probably mere bush-harrowing, as among the Aulad
'Ali, or the Western Libyans as mentioned by Strabo xvii. p. 831. j
\oo THE EASTERN LIBYANS
of camt% goat*, and d»eep U taun, as k that of the moufflon, antelope, and gazelle
when tbcw; ammah em be pt<xmeL Even jerboas and locusts are used for rood,
tfcottgii the linushagh abstain from birds, fish, or the big edible lizards, 3 CHI, butter,
fat, and milk are in general use in cooking. Milk is commonly used only after it has
curdled, and a dry food is made from it by evaporation. Honey is esteemed as a
luxury, and numerous wild plants are used as condiments. The food of the inhabitants
<of the littoral regions varies little from that of the interior tribes, and is prepared in
much the same manner.
The alimentation of the Eastern Libyans of antiquity was, as fer as can be judged,
little different from that of the modem occupants of their country. Although Procopius
state* that the Libyans had no bread, but lived upon raw wheat and barley, 3 this is an
error which be himself corrects when he mentions a native woman's baking bread,
according to the custom of the country, in the ashes, 4 a method often followed
to-day. The ancient people made great use of milk as food, 5 certain tribes, particularly
those near Aethiopia, even giving it to their sheep.* Anciently, as now, a sort of
cheese was made from milk. 7 Among vegetable foods, the use of dates, lotus, etc., has
already been mentioned, and what Strabo observed in regard to the Numidians, viz.
that they were eaters of roots rather than of flesh, was probably applicable to many of
the eastern tribes.* The consumption of meat was, however, widespread, despite local
taboos on certain animals. The natives of the interior, since their wealth was in their
flocks u*ed the flesh of wild animals in preference to that of domestic. 9 The Gyzantes
were content to eat Barbary apes ; 10 the troglodytes of Phazania, perhaps owing to the
#c&rchy of other game, to eat serpents. 11 The Libyans living along-shore in the Syrtica
Regio sought eagerly for such fish as were stranded on their beaches by the tides, 12 and
probably the Libyan oy6ters n known to the Graeco-Roman world were also eaten by
the tribesmen. The eating of locusts was widespread. Among the Nasamones these
insects were " dried in the sun and powdered. This powder," says Herodotus, " they
sprinkle on their milk and drink." u The same method of preparing this curious food
exists in Arabia. The Arabs there mingle the locusts, " brayed small, with their often
only liquid diet of sour buttermilk." ,s In Western Africa, the locust powder is boiled
with milk, or the insects arc — as in many other places — merely boiled. 16 At Murzuk,
' if, Duvcyricr, Lei Touartg du Nord, p. 409 sq. 2 Ibid. p. 401 sq.
'* l'r')t;t>\)')u», Dt hello Vandalico, H. 6,
1 I I/Id, 11. J, . . . n'lirm yhp v6j/u>t iv liavpowiott rovt tLprovs &irr3ff0ai.
f > JJ«rodotu» iv, 1 86 j Mela i. 8 ; cf. Strabo xvii. p. 833.
" Strabo xvii, p. X35, The sheep were aluo given flesh. 7 Ibid. xvii. p. 833. 8 /&;£ / of _ c j tm
u Mela i, H, elbui tit caro plurimum ferina ; nam gregibui quia id solum opimum est, quod potest parcitur.
'" Uwlotun iv, 194.
" Mela i. S, Trogodylae . , . alunlur serpentibus. Lack of game may have, accounted for the vegetarianism of the
Aui'siiiiiaun (Mela, he. elt., diamines . . . non vescuntur animalibus) of the west.
n Kintho xvii. p. K35. 18 0ribasiu6, Collect, medic, ii. 58.
H Jk'MotUH iv, 17Z, 16 C. M. Doughty, Wanderings in Arabia, vol. i. p. 59.
"• M, AduiiKon, J Voyage to Senegal, p. 161, Among certain Aethiopians, the locusts were powdered with salt and
iinulc into i.'flkcn (Strabo xvi, p. 77a).
ECONOMICS 101
in Fezzan, the locust is dried, stripped of its legs and wings, " drawn," and eaten raw.
According to an early traveller, it then " has a flavour similar to that of red herrings,
but more delicious." l
*
The main streams of Libyan traffic flowed south and north, rather than east and
west. From very early times the Eastern Libyans must have been engaged in caravan
commerce, since they were controllers of the routes which, passing through their
territories, ran from the Mediterranean southward into the Sudan. The greatest of these
routes was, of course, the famous Chad-Tripoli Road, a line of march by which
merchandise have been exchanged between north and south for thousands of years. The
products of the Sudan have always sought this Saharan outlet in preference to the
river-ways offered by the Nile, the Niger, or the Senegal ; 2 and it was -primarily with
a view of having factories near the northern terminus of this channel of communication
with the interior that the Carthaginians established their emporia along the Syrtic littoral.
As early as the XVIIIth Dynasty the Eastern Libyans appear to have been possessed
of commodities which they had obtained from the Sudan. Thus, in the " tribute "
extracted from the Tehenu by Queen Hatshepsut, mention is made of " ivory and seven
hundred tusks," 3 which could hardly have been obtained elsewhere than in Darfur,
Wadai, or the Chad Region. In classical times the evidence of this ivory trade is
explicit, as in the fragment of Hermippus : —
>) Ai/3v7j S' i\e(j)avTa 7ro\vv nrape^eu Kara irpaaiv.*
It is easily possible, therefore, that the intermediary source of the ivory objects found
in excavations in the northern Mediterranean lands, especially in the west, may have
been not Egypt but Libya. This applies, for example, to an ivory pendant in the form
of a monkey, and to some seals of ivory found at Crete — the probability being here
heightened if the conjecture of Evans, who has suggested that silphium may have found
its way from Libya to Minoan Crete, be correct. 5
Another African product which came from Libya to Europe was the ostrich egg,
of which examples have from time to time been found in Etruscan tombs. 6
1 F. Hornemann, op. cit. p. 59. In connection with the custom of eating insects, a disgusting habit of the Adyr-
machidae need not be mentioned except by reference (Herodotus iv. 168).
2 C. Perroud, De Syrticis emporiis, p. 143.
3 BAR ii. § 321. The leopard or panther skins in the same tribute may have been obtained by hunting in Eastern
Libya itself; cf. W. M. Miiller, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. p. 141 (New Karnak Obelisk, § 6). The existence in
ancient times of wild elephants in the Moghreb is doubtful, though Isidorus Hispalensis {Etymologiae, xiv. 5, $ 12) is
explicit on this point — olim etiam, et elephantis plena fult [Mauretania Tingitana] quos sola nunc India parturit.
4 Hermippus Comicus, Phormophori, Frag. i. 5. 15, Poet. Comic. Fragg., ed. Bothe.
5 A. J. Evans, Scripta Minoa, vol. i. p. 215 sq. As bearing on the connection of Eastern Libya and Crete, a passage of
Philostratus, Vita Apollonii iv. 34. 3, may be added to what has earlier been said of the proximity of the island to the
African main. Apropos of the temple at Lebanaeum, Philostratus comments on the number of Libyans who visited it :
iroAAol Se ko.1 Ai^voiv k avrb Trepaiovvrai, ktA. I may remark that in 1909 I saw a lentiscular Minoan crystal intaglio
at Marsa Suzah, near which town it was said by its Cretan owner to have been found.
6 J. Martha, V Art etrusque, p. 106.
io2 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
These evidences of Libyan commercial activity are, however, of slight importance
when compared with the evidence afforded by the Carthaginian factories mentioned as
having been established in the Syrtica Regio. 1 These posts, placed along a coast not
attractive to a sea-trade and in some parts very barren, could have been founded only
with a view mainly to monopolizing and developing the caravan traffic with Libya
Interior and Aethiopia. The staple exports of these Punic factories were in all
likelihood much the same as those of the mediaeval establishments in Tripolitana. The
Venetians had in exchange for their merchandise dried fruits, oil, grain, salt, sheepskins,
ox and camel hides, native cloths, grass mats and baskets, horses, saffron, aloes, wool,
wax, honey, alum, senna from Fezzan, Syrtic sponges, aromatic gums, skins of wild
beasts, gold (both wrought and in dust), ivory, and ostrich feathers. 2 The ancient
commerce, in which, since part of the products came from the interior, the Libyans
must have played an important role, dealt with most of these items, and with yet others.
Ivory and hides found their way from fabulous Aethiopia to the coast ; 3 the excellent
rock-salt of the interior, well known to the classical world, 4 was probably carried to
the Punic factories on the coast to be there exported or used in the pickling of
fish. 5 From the interior came also several varieties of semi-precious stones in which
the Libyans trafficked. The best known of these was the carbuncle. This gem, called
anthrax by Theophrastus 6 and carbunculus by Pliny, 7 was called also, from those who
purveyed it to Europe, " the Carthaginian stone," — 6 Kapxv^°vio<i Xt#o?. 8 It was brought
to the coast from the country of the Garamantes and the Gaetulians, 9 or from the
inland territories of the Nasamones. From the Syrtica Regio came the syrtitis,
a honey-coloured sard (?) ; 10 while the heliotropes which the Carthaginian merchant
exposed for sale in Mediterranean markets had their origin in Aethiopia and Libya
Interior. 11 The ebony of Southern Aethiopia of which Herodotus knew, 12 and the
rhinoceros horns which Ptolemy mentions in speaking of that vague but sub-Saharan
region which he called Agisymba, 13 were also probably brought the long way north-
ward by the Libyan caravans. From the littoral zone, moreover, came the famous
thy on or citrus wood, for which the Romans of the Empire paid prices so exorbitant.
The best quality was grown in the Oasis of Siwah, but the wood was found also
in Southern Cyrenaica. 14 Finally, from the south came the thin but unending stream
1 For these emporia, C. Perroud, op. cit. passim ; and the Carte des Emporia Punica, ad finem.
2 E. de la Primaudaie, Le Littoral de la Tripolitaine, p. 133.
8 As in the extreme west at the Atlantic port of Cerne. Scylax §112; cf. C. Perroud, op. cit. p. 149.
4 Herodotus iv. 181, 182, 183 et alibi; Pliny xxxi. 7. 6 C. Perroud, op. cit. p. 144.
6 Theophrastus, Frag. ii. 3 ; cf. L. Marcus, Histoire des Wandales, etc., p. 216 ; C. Tissot, Geographic comparee, etc.,
vol. i. p. 269 sq.
7 Pliny xxxvii. 7. s Strabo xvii. pp. 830, 835 ; cf. Pliny he, cit.
9 Strabo xvii. p. 835, . . . r) S virep twv TairovXaiv ccttiv 17 twv Tapap,dvTiav yrj irapa.XXy)Xo<s eKeivrj, offev 01
KapxrjSovioi Kop.i^ovTa.1 XI601. Pliny (Joe. cit.) says that carbuncles were found among the Aethiopians and the Garamantes,
and among the hills of the Nasamones. The last named people believed them to be of divine origin, and sought them at
the full of the moon, — -nascitur [scil. the carbuncle] apud Nasamonas in montibits, ut incolae putant, imbre divino. Inveniuntur ad
repercussum lunae maxime plenae. ... 10 Pliny xxxvii. 10. n Solinus, p. 138.
12 Herodotus iii. 14. 13 Ptolemy i. 8 § 4. 1* C. Tissot, op. cit. vol. i. p. 278 sqq.
ECONOMICS
103
ave
ons
of slaves to be bought of their captors or first purchasers by the Punic dealers, and by
them sold in their own or in foreign markets. 1 Herodotus gives some indication as to
the manner in which the supply was kept up. " The Garamantes," he remarks, " h
four-horse chariots in which they pursue the Troglodyte Aethiopians, who of all nati
whereof any account has reached our ears, are by far the fleetest of foot."- The history
ot the Chad-Tripoli Road, could it be written, would be, from prehistoric to modern
times, a continuous record of obscure misery and suffering.
Little direct evidence as to the imports for which the Eastern Libyans bartered the
products of their country and of Aethiopia exists. Like all barbarians, they doubtless
set such store by the manufactures of civilized countries 3 as greatly to reward those
who traded to them. 4 In mediaeval and modern times the Venetians imported into
Fk.. 9.
Tripolitana glass, corals, silks, and brocades, brasil-wood, wines, iron (in large quantities),
helmets and shields, spears and other weapons, lead, tin, copper, and mercury, planks
and wood-work/' Some of these commodities appear to have been imported in much
earlier times. Thus, even on the Atlantic seaboard, Athenian potteries and wine-jars,
Phoenician perfumes and glass-ware from Egypt were traded to the Libyans by the
Carthaginians.'' It seems probable also that the Eastern Libyans received their
better sorts of cloth from overseas, as well as their weapons of bronze and their vessels
ot silver.
The means of African transport before the introduction ot the camel have already
been touched on in the first chapter. Burdens were either imposed directly on the
hamlah oxen or drawn along by them in wains or tumbrils. Saddled oxen are shown in
the Barrebi and other petroglyphs of prehistoric date (Fig. 9), while similar rock-
drawings at Anai in Fezzan show the ancient caravaneers marching alongside of their
1 Cf. Terence, Eunuchus, Act i. Sc. 2, Act iii. Sc. 2 ; C. Perroud, op. cit. p. 145. - Herodotus iv. 1 S3.
:i C. Perroud, op. cit. p. 149.^. Perroud justly observes: omnia sane quae in Europa Asiaque fabricata, barbaros
sollicitabant.
4 Cf". H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 258, les benefices du commerce saharien sont enormes.
> G. Filiasi, S11IP antico commercio . . del Veneziani, p. 23 ; E. de la Primaudaie, op. cit. p. 132.
6 Scylax §112; cf. C. Perroud, loc. cit. The commodities mentioned were exchanged at Cerne lor local products.
104 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
labouring cattle, which draw behind them clumsy wains. 1 In Asben, the Chad regions,
and Kordofan, it may be remarked, porterage by oxen is still in vogue.
In connection with the subject of Saharan traffic, it is interesting to recall here
Herodotus's famous story of the five Nasamonian youths who adventured from their own
country into Nigritia. Although the motive of their journeying was not trade, but a
desire to know more of the interior, some idea of the great distances anciently traversed
safely to the interior may be gained from the narrative of the historian. Herodotus 2
was told by certain Cyreneans, who had visited the sanctuary of Amon at Siwah, and
there talked with the local chief " Etearchus " ('Ei-ea^o? ' ' A^mvimv fiao-tXew) about the
Nile sources, the following story.
Some Nasamones had once come to the court of Etearchus, where they told him
that some of the sons of their chiefs had drawn lots for five of their number to explore
the desert portions of Libya. Furnished with water and food, the five youths traversed
the littoral zone and the " wild-beast tract," and then, entering the uninhabited waste,
marched forward toward the west. At last they came to a plain in which were trees,
the fruit of which they gathered. While thus engaged, they were captured by some
dwarfish men under the middle height. Neither knew the other's language. The
captors took the youths across wide marshlands to a town inhabited by black pigmies,
who impressed the prisoners as being great sorcerers. After a space the youths were
released, and returned safely to their own land. The pigmy town, according to the
explorers, stood beside a great river which ran from east to west, and in which were
crocodiles. This stream Herodotus believed to be the Nile ; but if the statement as to
direction be correct, and if the geography of the Saharan borderlands has not greatly
changed within the (geologically) short time of twenty-five centuries, it appears that
conditions were such that five adventurers 3 were able to journey safely from the Syrtic
coast to the Upper Niger and back — a state of affairs which prevailed only with
limitations in modern times.
The Libyan trader, however, both along the shore and in the hinterland, was even
in pre- Islamic times exposed to grave dangers. Caravan -robbing and piracy by
wrecking were features of the life of the Eastern Libyans which the student of their
economy cannot ignore. It could not have been long after the establishment of the
Chad-Mediterranean traffic before the lawless tribes occupying the habitable areas
along the caravan lines began to take advantage of their position to pillage the rich
bullock-trains which painfully wended their way to or from the Sudan. After the
introduction of the camel these raids probably became more frequent, on account, on the
one hand, of the increased communication between north and south, and, on the other
of the fact that the robbers could more rapidly move from one point to another, fall
upon a kajilah by surprise, and escape across the desert. By Roman times highway
1 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. pp. 221. There were many oxen suitable for similar work among the Aethiopians ; cf.
Herodotus iv. 183 ; for plaustra, Silius Italicus, Punica, iii. 299 ; and cf. infra, p. 149 sq.
2 Herodotus ii. 32 sq. 3 Q f the size of the escort nothing is said.
ECONOMICS 105
robbery in the interior had become so prevalent that it was necessary to check it by
punitive expeditions on a large scale.
The Libyan chieftains had strongholds in which they stored the superfluous parts
of their booty — to. wXeovd^ovTa w^eXeta?. 1 Diodorus, who supplies this information, adds
that the Libyans have neither rulers nor laws — a somewhat exaggerated statement — but
live by rapine, suddenly raiding in from the desert — e'/c t»?? ip^/iov — to which they as
swiftly retreat. 2 So seriously did these forays affect Roman trade with the interior that,
as early as the end of Caesar's lifetime, a punitive column was despatched against the
Garamantes. 3 Later, in the year 18 B.C., a second and much more important expedition,
under the conduct of Cornelius Balbus, penetrated into Phazania, and there subdued
many strongholds and tribes of marauders. The account left by Pliny of these difficult
operations makes it clear that they were undertaken because of the incessant plundering
along the trade-ways. 4 The two remarkable journeys of Septimius Flaccus and of Julius
Maternus to Aethiopia, 5 made at a later date, 6 were probably both undertaken to prevent
caravan-robbing. The second of these expeditions is of especial interest, since Maternus,
who had marched from Leptis Magna to Garama, there joined forces with the chief of
the Garamantes against the Aethiopians. As at an earlier date Garama had been one of
the towns taken by Balbus, 7 it is clear that since the time of that reprisal the Gara-
mantes had become sensible of the benefits of the regular caravan traffic, and were
anxious to keep the roads open, even to the far south.
In the littoral trade the ancient shipmaster had reason to dread not only the
ordinary dangers of Syrtic navigation but the wreckers with whom parts of the coast
were infested. The Nasamones seem to have been the most active of these " Barbary
pirates " of classical antiquity. Their depredations appear to have been confined to
wrecking, their shelterless coasts affording more opportunity for this form of piracy than
for that practised by the Carian sea-rovers, whose harbours gave them snug shelter, and
who preyed on an established commerce instead of on such casual navigators as those who
skirted the eastern shores of the Syrtis Major. The Nasamones, however, must have
made the best of their limited opportunities, to judge by the " bad eminence " which
they achieved, and by the strong measures which were taken against them by the
Romans. The
. . . aequoreus Nasamon, invadere fluctu
Audax naufragia et praedes avellare ponto ■ • • ,
of Silius Italicus 8 is so associated in the poet's mind with wrecking that he describes
1 Diodorus Siculus iii. 49. 3. 2 Ibid. iii. 69. 2.
8 L. Annaeus Florus iv. 12. The fact only, without details, is there recorded.
4 Pliny v. 5 ; F. Borsari, Geografia etnologica delta Tripolitania, p. 202 sqq. ; Vergil (Jeneis, vi. 794 sqq.) is probably
referring to the expedition of Balbus in the phrase : —
. . . super Garamantas et Indus
Proferet imperium.
5 Marinus Tyrius ap. Ptolemy i. 8. 5. 6 Else they would almost certainly have been noticed by Pliny.
7 Pliny, he. tit. 8 s >^' las Italicus iii. 320 sq.
106 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
even a Nasamonian chief in the Carthaginian service as
Audax in fluctu laceras captare carinas}
An earlier poet had already written
. . . cum toto commercia mundo
Naufragi Nasamones habent. 2
The predatory habits of the Nasamones are further signalized by Quintus Curtius, 3
and the very curious manner in which the tribe is said by Silius to have disposed of its
dead 4 is further evidence, quite irrespective of the truth or falsity of the poet's account,
that, in Roman opinion, the Nasamones were associated with the sea, and in no
creditable manner. Presumably it was in some attempt to regulate affairs in the Syrtic
Gulf that two Roman quaestors in the time of Domitian lost their lives. For this last
outrage a force under the praetor of Numidia was despatched against the wreckers. The
Nasamones took the camp of the praetor, but became so drunk on the wine they found
there that the Roman commander, returning, fell upon them and crushed them. There-
after, it may be supposed, Syrtic trade was on a somewhat better footing, though the
barbarians continued to exist, despite Domitian's casual remark to the Senate that " he
had forbidden the Nasamones to live." 5
All Libyan trade was conducted by barter until, perhaps, late classical times. It
has been repeatedly stated by a number of writers 6 that the Libyans of the Egyptian
invasions had " money," an error which arose from an early mis-translation of an item in
the Egyptian lists of spoil. It is needless to remark that no hieroglyphic word for
"money" existed at the time of the invasions any more than, among the people of the
Mediterranean at that epoch, the thing itself. If any fixed standard of exchange, either
in animals or by weight of metal, existed among the Eastern Libyans in early times,
no evidence of it remains ; although in the dumb-trade carried on by the Carthaginians
with the Libyans west of the Pillars of Heracles, commodities were exchanged by
the buyer's offering gold for the goods of the seller until a bargain was struck. 7
There is no evidence that even in full classical times any of the Eastern Libyans
had a currency of their own, except in one doubtful instance. This is that of the
Macae, to whom have been attributed certain coins in silver and bronze struck after
200 B.C., and bearing in some cases the legend AIBTfiN on the reverse, together with the
letter M or the Phoenician d. 8 The coins of the Syrtica Regio, however, of which
1 Silius Italicus i. 409. 2 Lucan ix. 432 so. » Q. Curtius iv. 7. * Silius Italicus xiii. 480 so.
5 Johannes Zonaras, Annal. xi. 19 (p. 500) ; cf. Dionysius, Periegesis, 208 sqq. :
Ktlvov 8' aZ wepl x<3pov ipr^xmO'eina. p,iXadpa
dvSpZv a8pi)<rei,a<s 6.iro<{>di.p.kv<nv Nao-a/iajvwi/
ois Atos ovk aAeyovras a7raiA.ecrev Aixrovis gu'x/x?j.
A60S here = Domitian. For the date, Eusebius, Chronic, ad ann. Abrah. 2101 =a.d. 86, where the defeats of the Nasamones
and the Dacians are mentioned.
6 Recently by H. Weisgerber, Les Blancs d' Afrique, p. 29 and n. 1. The slightest acquaintance with the early history
of numismatics should have prevented this error from having ever been perpetrated in the first instance, or repeated later.
1 Herodotus iv. 196. Gold having had a standard value among the Carthaginians, the Atlantic Libyans with whom
they traded must have come to have a rough appreciation of its value.
8 C. L. Mttller, op. cit. vol. i. p. 132 ; B. V. Head, Historia Numorum, p. 73;.
ECONOMICS 107
these are probably a specimen, can hardly be called Libyan, since they owed their origin
to the Phoenicians, the Greeks, or the Romans.
In general, if one considers the trade of the Eastern Libyans from an economic point
of view, it may be said to have been always of a primitive character. The exports were
natural products — either luxuries like ebony, ivory, ostrich plumes, or the skins of wild
beasts, or coarse products like hides or salt. The imports were arms and other objects of
metal, foreign cloth fabrics, potteries, glass, and all such objects as the Libyans desired
but knew not how to make. The effect of such a trade on the natives can be only
roughly summarized. Those of the littoral became slightly more advanced than those
of the interior, especially as they came into direct contact with foreigners. The
caravans to and from the Sudan led to the gradual growth of trade -towns like
Cydamus (Ghadames) or Garama (Ghermah), where exchanges could be made and
goods left in bond. The Chad— Tripoli road, also, excited the rapacity of the wild
tribesmen of the interior, who sought to rifle the passing kafilas. This in time led to
the institution which now exists of paying tolls for protection within a given area ; an
arrangement by which the various tribes through whose districts the caravans passed
derived a surer revenue than that extracted by violence. 1 The trade-routes and the
stations which grew up along them must be regarded as civilizing elements in Eastern
Libya as elsewhere ; but as in modern, so too — and in a greater degree — in ancient
times, the European or Asiatic products introduced into Saharan Africa affected but
little the great body of the people. Where to-day a chief in Kanem has an obsolete
musket, one of his predecessors two thousand years ago may have been the proud owner
of a cheap Carthaginian corselet. These enviable possessions then, as now, were beyond
the reach of common tribesmen. In the trade-towns, a little more sharpness and intelli-
gence, a greater power of combination, and less of the prisca fides were probably to be
found than in the gebel ; and in the north, the Libyans of the littoral zone, aping and
mingling with the foreign colonists, strengthened their hands with weapons from over-
seas, but became to a greater extent softened under the influence of foreign luxuries.
1 Cf. H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 259.
CHAPTER V
SOCIETY AND GOVERNMENT
To form a just opinion of the sociology and government of the Eastern Libyans, it is
best to begin with a consideration of the family. After an examination of the evidence
on this question, on marriage, and on the duties and status of women, the problem of
government, in its various aspects, can be discussed more profitably.
Although the modern Berber seems indifferent to the marital opportunities
sanctioned by Islam, there is no question but that his ancestors were regularly and
extensively polygamous. The monumental testimony on this head, as afforded by
certain ancient representations of Libyan families, 1 may be set aside in face of the direct,
ample, and conclusive testimony of the Egyptian inscriptions and the Greek and Roman
writers.
Sallust sensibly remarks that among the Mauri, i.e. the native Africans, political
marriages were of little value, " since every man has as many wives as he pleases, in
proportion to his ability to maintain them ; some ten, others more, but the kings most
of all. Thus the affection of the husband is divided among a multitude ; no one of
them becomes a companion to him, 2 but all are equally neglected." 3 This gives force
to the answer returned by certain tribesmen to the Byzantine general, Solomon, when he
had written to them threatening their hostages. " It is for you," retorted the Libyans,
" who cannot have more than one wife, to be concerned with the care of your children ;
but we, who are able to have, if we wish, fifty wives, are not apprehensive of lacking
descendants." 4 This retort is preserved by Procopius, who in the same passage mentions
the polygamy of a chieftain called Medisinisas. 5 Strabo states that the Libyans of the
interior (where the primitive marriage customs would naturally be best preserved)
married numerous wives, and had large families. 6 Mela also, writing of the nomads,
observes that each man has several wives at once, and therefore so many children and
relatives that the family groups were by no means small ones. 7 Each man of the
1 Sa-hu-re ; Beni Hasan ; Slunt sculptures.
2 . . . nulla pro socia obtinet. (" Obtinet" here absolute as in Livy xxi. 46, . . . fama obtinet.)
3 Sallust, Iugurtha, lxxx. 4 Procopius, De bello Vandalico, ii. 11. '■> Ibid. loc. cit.
6 Strabo xvii. p. 835. ? Mela i. 8.
108
SOCIETY AND GOVERNMENT 109
Nasamones, according to Herodotus, had several wives, 1 and further evidence as to
Libyan polygamy is derivable from Egyptian sources. The great Karnak inscription
of Merneptah says that Meryey, the leader of the Libyans, was accompanied in his
campaign by his wife (singular) and his sons ; 2 but although only one wife is here
mentioned, it is reasonable to infer, if the record is to be taken literally, that the six
sons of Meryey were all men, z and that the chieftain had, or at least had had, other wives,
since for one woman among a primitive people to be the mother of six adult males is
exceptional in itself, and because it would be yet more extraordinary, supposing she were
so in fact, that she should be young enough to accompany ber husband on a dangerous
and arduous military expedition. The real state of affairs is made clear by a brief item
in the Karnak list of prisoners taken by the victorious troops of Merneptah : " Women
of the fallen chief of Libya, whom he brought with him ... 12 Libyan women." 4
Meryey's " wife," therefore, was probably merely the chief lady of the harim in which
some of his six sons were born.
In the second Libyan war of Rameses III., as in the earlier invasion under Meryey,
the chieftains were accompanied by their women. Kepper, son of Ded, for example, had
his "son, wife [sing.J, and family" 5 with him in the field. But beside his chief wife
he, like Meryey, had also his harim, two references being made to his women in
different texts. 6 Three hundred and forty-two wives of chiefs were captured by the
Egyptians in this war, together with sixty-five unmarried women and one hundred and
fifty-one girls. These latter belonged to the chiefs' families, the male captives of which
numbered one hundred and thirty-one boys. 7 These numbers must, of course, include
the families of more chiefs than the six who were mentioned in the lists, but must
equally have been the families of men of rank ; as is indeed distinctly stated with regard
to the three hundred and forty-two wives. The twelve hundred and five men taken
captive, as well as those slain, appear to have had no women with them in the field.
Further evidence may be gathered from the Serapeum Stela of Harpeson
(XXIInd Dynasty), and from the Piankhi Stela (XXIIIrd Dynasty). The former
of these documents contains the genealogy of Harpeson, who derived his origin from
a family of Libyan settlers in the Egyptian Delta. 8 It is to be noted that in it no
husband is recorded as having more than one wife — perhaps because the family, under
Egyptian influence, became quasi-monogamous, perhaps because only those women
through whom Harpeson descended were deemed worthy of mention. Perhaps each
lady mentioned was in her time chief lady of the harm, and no other names were given.
1 Herodotus iv. 172.
2 BAR iii. §§ 579, 601 (Athribis Stela) ; cf. § iii. 595 (Cairo Column), where the presence of women among the
invaders is noticed.
3 BAR iii. § 588 ; confirmed by Cairo Column, BAR iii. § 601.
4 BAR iii. 601 ; cf. BAR iii. § 610 (Israel Stela) . . . "his women were taken before his face."
5 BAR iv. §. 103. 6 BAR "i- §§ 601, 610.
7 BAR iv. § in. The Papyrus Harris, speaking in briefer and more general terms, says merely that Rameses III.
took captive the wives and children of the Meshwesh.
s BAR iv. § 787. In eleven instances the name of the wife appears with that of her husband.
no THE EASTERN LIBYANS
At any rate, the Piankhi Stela discloses the fact that in addition to their chief ladies,
the Libyan dynasts of the Delta had other wives in their harims. Thus the chief lady
of Namlot, whose overthrow by the Aethiopian monarch is narrated in the stela of the
latter, was the queen Nestent. Visiting the palace of his vanquished enemy, however,
Piankhi " caused that there be brought to him the king's wives and king's daughters," 1
who tried, though with poor success, to amuse the Aethiopian Pharaoh. This may be
regarded as summing up what is known of Libyan marriage relations ; the people were
extensive polygamists, within those harims some one wife occupied a position of
pre-eminence much like that of a first wife in a modern Moslem household of the
better class.
It is not surprising that the facts, being what they were, should have been grossly
misrepresented by monogamous Greeks or Romans who had only a slight acquaintance
with African matters. Even modern European travellers have occasionally described
this or that form of group-marriage which they have noticed among some primitive
people as " irregular promiscuity " ; although such a condition does not really exist in
the world. 2 Similarly a Roman writer declares that the Garamantes had no marriage
institutions ; 3 and Herodotus, who has been quoted as testifying to the polygamy of the
Nasamones, tells with regard to the latter people much the same story. The Greek
historian states that the Nasamones, in their intercourse with their wives, resembled the
Massagetae. 4 The marriage customs of the latter people he elsewhere characterizes by
saying that although each man is married, he promiscuously enjoys the wives of his
fellow tribesmen. 5 This is practically placing at one stroke two peoples in a state which
even among the most primitive savages does not exist to-day. Herodotus is here
certainly wrong with regard to the Nasamones, and probably also with regard to the
Massagetae. Of the Gindanes, Herodotus more credibly states that their women wear
on their legs anklets of leather ; that each lover a woman has gives her one of these
tokens ; and that she who can show the most trophies is best esteemed, as she has been
sought by the greatest number of men. 6 This story may relate to some such practice
of girls obtaining a dowry by prostitution as that in vogue among the Aulad Nayl
(Berbers) of the present time. A third charge of promiscuity is brought by Herodotus
against the Auseans. He says of that people that they do not marry, but dwell together
like gregarious animals ; and that their children, when full-grown, are assigned by the
tribal assembly to the parents they most resemble. 7 Here, again, arises the initial
improbability as to any society's having ever been really promiscuous ; and the difficulty,
supposing such a state to have existed, of understanding what relationship obtained
between the " parents " to whom the children were assigned.
1 BAR iv - § 8 49- 2 J. Deniker, Races of Man, p. 231 and notes.
3 Martianus Capella, De nuptiis Mercurii, etc., iv. (p. 232), Garamantes vulgo feminis sine matrimonii) sociantur.
i Herodotus iv. 172. 5 Ibid. i. 216. 6 j^. i v . 176.
7 Ibid. iv. 180; cf. Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 1 1 1 in FHG, where much the same story is told of the
Liburnians. AifivpvLoi should be emended to Aij3ves.
SOCIETY AND GOVERNMENT
1 1 1
With regard to these errors, which have been too readily credited by certain modern
writers, two more points may here be mentioned. The first is the absurdity of sup-
posing that a promiscuous people should have any consciousness of virginity, apart from
the physical fact of it. What may be called the moral consciousness of virginity existed,
however, among the Eastern Libyans, as in the case of those very Auseans whose
marriage customs Herodotus so misunderstood. The Ausean mock-fight, held annually
in honour of " Athene," was (a) supposed to be performed by virgins, and (b) if any
participant received hurts from which she died, she was therefore accounted no true
maid. Among this people, who felt that an absence of virginity in the person of a
participant in a certain religious rite would be punished with death, 1 Herodotus would
have his readers believe that there prevailed absolutely unrestricted intercourse between the
sexes ! The second is that the predominance of manes-cultxis throughout ancient North
Africa testifies to the existence of well-defined ideas of kinship ; ideas which could only
have existed among a people which fully recognized some form of marriage by which
blood-relationships could be easily traced.
Of the marriage customs of the Eastern Libyans but few are known. The
Adyrmachidae brought all women about to be married to their king, that he might
cohabit with such as were agreeable to him. 2 Among the Augilae it was customary
for every bride to prostitute herself on her wedding night to all who paid for the
privilege, maugre which, and despite the fact that to have had intercourse with many
men on that occasion was deemed a great honour, the woman thereafter remained
faithful to her husband. 3 The first of these customs, recalling the droit de cuissage of
feudal France, may have had its origin in a religious fear of accepting the responsibility
of defloration. 4 The second seems allied to the customs of the ancient Gindanes and the
modern Aulad Nayl, mentioned above. Even obscurer than these notices is that which
states that among the Machlyes, when a girl has several suitors, the men feast with her
father or a kinsman, and that thereafter each suitor in turn jests and makes merry before
the maiden, who becomes the wife of him who provokes her to laughter ! 5
Before leaving this subject, it is necessary to touch briefly on an allied topic : that
of the matriarchate. Many modern writers are convinced that this state prevailed in the
earliest stages of Libyan society, and it cannot be denied that indications that this was
the case are strong, if not conclusive. That sociological condition in which the true
head of the family is not the father but the mother has been and yet is widespread in
1 Cf. the strong sense of virginity among the Atarantians of the Moghreb. Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 140 in FHG.
2 Herodotus iv. 168. s Mela i. 8.
4 Defloration before marriage is among some primitive peoples an obligatory act. Among the Bataks and Pelew
Islanders it is performed by the parents ; among the Bisayas of the Philippines, by the matrons ; in Cambodia, by the
priests. The Adyrmachid kings, like the Cambodian priests, may have acted as sacred men who could destroy virginity
with impunity. Cf. G. A. Wilken, Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indi'i, p. 294 ; Giraud-Teulon, Origines dumariage, p. 33,
note ; J. Deniker, op. cit. p. 230.
5 Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 136 in FHG. This passage recalls those European folk-tales in which a sad or solemn
princess is won by that suitor who makes her laugh. For examples see P. C. Asbjornsen, Folk and Faery Tales, p. 269 ;
J. and W. Grimm, Household Tales, vol. i. p. 32. For these references I have to thank my father, Dr. Arlo Bates.
ii2 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Africa. Thus, the matriarchate is known to have existed in Aethiopia, 1 as in the
Meroitic kingdom ; 2 and there is no doubt that it flourished in early Egypt. 3 Among
many Negritians of the Sudan the matriarchate still persists ; 4 among the Berbers of
the present time are what appear to be matriarchal survivals. Thus the Imushagh
explain their abstention from fish, birds, and edible lizards on the score that these
(totemic) animals are "their mothers' brothers," a form of expression emphatically
matriarchal. 5 Among the Imushagh, also, the laws of succession, as seen in the case of
the Azgar chieftainships, are sometimes based on the matriarchal principle of partus
sequitur ventrem ; a principle not in harmony with the Kuran, and therefore probably
pre-Islamic in its origin. Those Imushagh whose laws of inheritance have the
matriarchal cast call their institution for the .transmission of property the law Beni-
Ummiah (juS, JS), i.e. the law of the Mothers children, and are themselves said to
be Beni-Ummiah Imushagh. According to the Beni-Ummiah all property falls
into two divisions : (a) that acquired by individual work, and (b) that acquired
by violence, and called ehere n butelma, or "fruits (lit. 'goods') of wrong-doing."
On the death of the (male) head of a family, all the property of class (a) is divided
equally among the children of the deceased, without regard to primogeniture or sex.
The property of class (b) passes, without division or diminution, to the eldest son of the
eldest sister of the deceased. 6 This practice existed formerly not only among the northern
Imushagh, but also among those known as the Massufa, west of Timbuktu, and was
therefore both widespread and of early origin. It is almost certainly a matriarchal
survival. In ancient times an Egyptian notice records that, on the defeat of a Libyan
chief, one of his brothers, in preference to a son, was installed in his place ; 7 a Greek
writer records that a number of Libyan tribes had as a common ancestor a " nymph "
whom he styles Amphithemis ; 8 and a vague story was current in Roman times to the
effect that in Libya was a tribe, the Byaei, in which the women were ruled by a
woman, the men by a man. 9 The survival, even to a period as late as Graeco-Roman
times, of the matriarchate among the less advanced tribes would account for the lengthy
and curious relation of Diodorus Siculus concerning the Amazons of North Africa. 10
1 Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 142 in FHG.
2 Cf. Diodorus Siculus i. 33, and the relative prominence given to the Candacae as compared to their male consorts
in the Meroitic reliefs.
3 R. I. Fruin, De Manethone, etc., p. 20 {Recensio African!), Bivtofyns . . . k<p' ov eKpidt) ras yvvaiKas /WiAetas
•yepas %X elv - The Recens. Eusebii (p. 21) gives . . . Bio<£is . . . eicpidr) ko.1 ras . . . ktA. Biv<36' / ots = Baneteren. Cf.
J. H. Breasted, History of Egypt, p. 85 sq. ; W. M. F. Petrie, History of Egypt, vol. i. p. 21.
4 E.-F. Gautier, Sahara alg'erien, p. 138 ; W. Bosman, Voyage de Guinee, p. 197 sq. Cf. for Central ' Africa, P. du
Chaillu, Voyages dans P Afrique equatoriale, p. 282.
5 E.-F. Gautier, loc. cit.; H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 401 sq., noted the taboos, but could get no
explanation for them.
6 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 393 sqq. The Imushagh who are Beni-Ummiah have an amusing story to account for the
origin of this custom. It is well told by Duveyrier, p. 398 sq., but is unfortunately too long to be introduced here.
7 BAR iii. § 585. s Agroetas, Frag. 1 in FHG.
9 Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 133 in FHG., kv Buoiots Alfivo-LV dvi)p ph dvSpZv /WiAevei, yvvr) Se yvvaiKwv.
10 Diodorus Siculus iii. 53 sq. This evidence has been adduced by D. R. Maclver and A. Wilkin {Libyan Notes,
p. 4 sq.), in connection with the matriarchate, but the other evidence is not presented.
SOCIETY AND GOVERNMENT 113
According to this writer, there dwelt in the extreme west of Libya an edvo? ywaiKo-
icpaTovpevov, 1 an Amazonian race, where the usual status of the sexes was reversed. The
" history " of the Amazons, it is needless to say, is pure fiction ; the very existence of a
nation of fighting women and spinning men is in itself an absurdity ; but the length and
nature of Diodorus's story point, in conjunction with the evidence cited, and with the
fact that both in Berber legend and folk-lore, 2 as well as in authentic history, women
figure prominently, to the probability that the matriarcbate was at some early period
widely established among the primitive North Africans.
The occupations of the Libyan women are of interest from the sociological point of
view, but the information on the subject is small. The daily life of the female members
of any ancient North African community must, however, have been much what it is
at the present time. The women must have prepared and cooked the food, milked the
flocks, and, among the more advanced tribes, done the weaving — the last a somewhat
laborious process even to this day among the Berbers, who do not, as a rule, employ
shuttles. The baskets in which the Libyan women represented in a Beni Hasan
painting are seen carrying their children on their backs are doubtless the work of their
own hands. Of their care for their children but one particular is known — the latter
were in most tribes regularly cauterized when four years old with a flock of wool on
the top of the head, or about the veins of the temple. " This they do," says Herodotus,
" to prevent them from being in their after lives plagued by a flow of rheum from the
head ; and such, they declare, is the reason why they are so much more healthy than
other men." 3 If the child had a fit during the cauterization, the native remedy was to
sprinkle it with the stale of a goat. 4 It need hardly be said that firing, both as a
curative and as a preventative measure, is at present universally employed, and in some
cases with good results, throughout North Africa and the Sudan. Probably most of
these operations were in the hands of the women, who would be skilled in simples like
the wives of the modern nomads.
The status of women was undoubtedly a good one. It will appear later that they
had a real share both in the religious and in the political life of the people, and as
represented on the Egyptian monuments they were as well off for personal ornaments
as were the men. 5 It is probable that the matriarchate bequeathed to them exceptional
privileges, and it is perhaps for this reason that the chiefs' women of the Sa-hu-re reliefs
are portrayed as wearing the penistasche, a distinctly masculine article of attire which
will be described in the section on dress. One of the Medinet Habu tiles also shows
a Libyan woman in male dress, in this case the kilt and robe, though from the Slunt
sculptures and from a painting at Beni Hasan the true feminine dress is known to have
been a kirtle belted at the waist. This masquerading in men's garb can have been done
1 Diodorus Siculus iii. 53. 1. 2 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 400 sq. 3 Herodotus iv. 187.
4 Ibid. loc. cit. ; cf. Oribasius, Collect, medic, p. 45, where the Libyans are said to reduce fevers by the drinking of
goat's stale, a practice said to have been followed by the Greek physician Evenor.
5 BAR iii. § 584, for a notice of a woman's gear.
Q
ii 4 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
for but one reason, viz. because upon the wife of a chieftain male costume was a badge
of dignity. It is in precisely the same spirit that Hatshepsut appears on the monuments
of her reign in male attire, and that the queens of Meroe are sometimes sculptured as
wearing beards.
After questions of the family, and the status of women, comes naturally that of
government. Living in a tribal state, the Eastern Libyans were ruled by chieftains
whose powers seem to have ranged from those of the modern Bedawin sheykh to those
invested in some of the great sedentary emirs of Northern Arabia. The statement of
Mela to the effect that the interior tribes lived dispersed in families, without laws, and
without undertaking anything in common— in familias passim et sine lege dispersi nihil in
commune consultant 1 — is but partially true ; it is to be accepted merely as a testimony
to the laxness of the social institutions of the people.
The Libyan chieftainship was apparently hereditary within a family ; the general
practice seems to have been to bestow it on an individual who had acquired a reputa-
tion for justice ; 2 but the holder of the office might be required, if unsatisfactory,
to abdicate in favour of a kinsman. 3 This happened in the case of a great chief not
of a tribe merely but of a confederacy. As has been said above, the Libyan emir
Meryey J after his defeat at the hands of the Egyptians, was dispossessed, and one of
his brothers put in his place. 4
The chiefs both of tribes and confederacies were assisted in some, if not in all, cases
by councils. Rameses III. caused to be brought before him the captive " tens" of his
Libyan enemies, these " tens " being councillors. 5 Among the Auseans a council,
apparently of all full-grown men, assembled every third month, i.e. once in each season
of the year. 6 Therefore what seems to have been an ancient usage has to-day its parallel
among the Imushagh tribes and confederacies of the Sahara, e.g. in the Berbers com-
prised in the Azgar Confederation. So distinctive and deep-rooted does the government
of the Saharan Berbers appear that it is advisable to pause here, and to consider for
comparative purposes its principal characteristics as exhibited in the Kel Azgar 7 just
mentioned.
The first noteworthy point is that, like all the Imushagh, the Azgar are formed of
two elements : (a) the aristocratic or noble tribes, Ihaggaren, and (6) the vassal or servile
1 Mela i. 8.
2 The Alitemnii ('AA.trc/ii'toi Alf3ves = the 'AArra/x/iJot of Ptolemy iv. 6 § 6, a tribe of Libya Interior perhaps to be
related to the fleet Troglodytic Aethiopians of Herodotus iv. 183) chose as kings the fleetest among them : to aid him
the tribesmen then elected the most just — tov SiKatoTarov. Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 138 in FHG. Cf. the
Alitemnian custom with that of the tall Atlantic Aethiopians, who chose their chiefs for their stature. Scylax § hi.
3 Pliny, viii. 40, has a curious story of a deposed king of the Garamantes who regained his position with the
help of an army of two hundred dogs — a native folk-tale, obviously, suggesting many parallels. 4 BAR iii. § 586.
5 BAR iv. § 42. The word n M TO ' var. n M *$ may mean either "councillors" or "nobles." Cf.
G. Maspero, Etudes egyptiennes, vol. ii. p. 197 sqq.; H. Brugsch, Hieroglyphisch-demotisches Worterbuch, Suppl., p. 927 sq.
That the meaning is here "councillors " is certain for reasons given in BAR, he. cit., note c.
6 Herodotus iv. 180. The object of the meetings, according to Herodotus, was the assignment of children
to parents. 7 Kel, Vf = people, gens.
SOCIETY AND GOVERNMENT 115
tribes, Imghad. The latter pay tribute or service in various ways to the former, and lack
certain privileges ; in some cases, for instance, an " ignoble " tribe may not own camels,
or, in others, bear arms. This division is explicable on the ground that the Imghad
are the descendants ot a conquered people. But it is necessary to state emphatically
that though the division into lhaggaren and Imghad is so ancient that the Saharan Berbers
preserve no knowledge of its origin, there is no textual evidence of it in the Egyptian or
classical records. The government of the Azgar is a sort of feudal monarchy, tempered
by that deep-rooted spirit of communism to be found among all Berber peoples. Each
tribe elects from the members of its ruling family its amghar (pi. imgharen), or chief.
These imgharen in turn elect from the members of a " royal " family an amenukal (pi.
imenukaleri), or "king," to rule with their help and at their pleasure, over the whole
confederacy. In the case of misconduct, the amenukal is deposed, and in this case, or
when he is deceased, the natural heir to the office, who must be confirmed by the
imgharen, is not the son of the late "king," but rather the son of the late "king's"
eldest sister. This form ot succession to power or property is the one usual among
the aristocratic Imushagh.
The Azgar Confederacy is thus made up : nine noble tribes, six ot which are
composed of more than one clan, lhaggaren, and thirty-two ignoble tribes, Imghad. As a
typical noble tribe may be taken the Imenghassaten. The Imenghassaten are made up of
three divisions, the Inennakaten, Tegehe n abbar, and the Tegehe n bedden. A man of the
Inennakaten calls himself an Anennakat, of the Imenghassaten (tribe), of the Azgar
(Confederacy), of the lhaggaren Imoshagh (" noble " or " free " Tuareg). The tribes of the
Imghad are generally not subdivided. 1
Certain features of ancient Libyan government are clearly discernible in the
constitution of the Azgar Confederacy. It has already been seen that Meryey, like a
modern amenukal, might be deposed, that he was succeeded, as would happen to-day, not
by a son, but by a kinsman on the distaff side, and that there existed anciently, at least
among the Auseans, a council such as that which at present appoints the imgharen. Yet
another parallel exists in the fact that the chieftainships were anciently, as at present, of
different grades. The confederated Meshwesh had an amenukal who is recorded in the
triumph of Rameses III. as: "Chiefs of the Meshwesh . . . . 1 man."- But this
head-chief had under his command subordinate chiefs, " leaders ot the land of
Meshwesh," 3 " his chiefs," J " chieftains of the enemy." : ' Among the Libyan dynasts
of the Delta (XXIIIrd Dynasty), the titles of the rulers show a similar variety. The
"king" Namlot, a "Great Chief of the Me(shwesh)," is styled "Great Chief of
Chiefs," i.e. amenukal:'' Associated with him is another but less important " king,"
Yewepet, 7 at the head of the Delta Libyans under their " Great Chiefs of Me(shwesh) "
and "Chiefs of Me(shwesh)."'- The monumental sources also point to the Eastern Libyans
1 A. Hanoteau, Grammaire de /a langue Tamachek, p. xv. sqq., for the above outline of the Azgar government.
2 BAR iv. §111. ; BAR iv. § 1 12. 4 BAR iv. § 90. 6 BAR iv. §111.
6 BAR iv. §§ 678, 830. 7 BAR iv. § 830. s BAR iv. §§ 815, S30.
n6 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
as having been in Egyptian times under chiefs of various grades — there appears to have
been a class of Libyan captains wearing but one ostrich-plume ; another which wore two. 1
It was these differences in rank, which have survived to the present day, that led in
classical times to the diversity of terms used by Greek and Roman writers in speaking of
Libyan chiefs. Mention is made of " kings " (/WXe*?, 2 reges 3 ) ; of " dynasts "
(Swdo-rai 4 ) ; " rulers " (. . . t&v fiapfidpav tov<; ap X ovTa<; . . . 5 ) ; and of " elders "
(primores 6 ). Comprised in a single work, the Johannis of Corippus, are a variety of titles.
Libyan chiefs are therein designated by the terms praefectus, regens, rex, princeps, or
tyrannus ; 7 and in certainly one instance, and probably in many, these rulers were aided
or restrained in their conduct of affairs by a council of notables or sheykhs (proceres). 8
Excepting in a general way, the duties and privileges of the Libyan chiefs are
obscure. In the Egyptian records they appear as captains in war, or as councillors of the
confederacy. In times of peace their authority was in many cases probably but slight,
although even then they enjoyed better food and had better gear than the average tribes-
man. Thus, among the rudest and poorest Libyans, it was only the chiefs who had mats of
skins. 9 The sheykhly office had its tokens in regard to which Procopius has an interesting
passage. That writer relates that on one occasion the Tripolitan chiefs came to Belisarius,
according to their ancient custom, to be confirmed in their positions, and to receive
the official insignia — T a yvmpiap,ara t% apxns- These marks of office consisted of : —
1. A silver-gilt sceptre (. . . pd^Sof re dpyvpd KaTaKe^pvawpbevrf).
2. A silver-tissue skull cap (ttiXos dpyvpovs) with silver fillets.
3. A white robe, fastening at the shoulder with a golden buckle.
4. A white decorated tunic.
5. A pair of gilded sandals. 10
Older marks of dignity than these were the ostrich-plume or birds' wings ; n and the long
ornamented robe which a consensus of the monumental evidence and a Roman notice 12
show to have been marks of rank. Tattooing also, and the wearing of ceremonial tails, as
will appear later, served to distinguish the Libyan rulers from their subjects. As has
been pointed out above, the wives of great chiefs were sometimes dignified with mascu-
line attire.
1 This is paralleled in the case of the negro tributaries seen on the monuments, e.v. LD, Abth. iii. pi. 1 17, where the
great chief wears two feathers, his followers one each. Cf. W. M. Muller, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. p. 121.
2 Cf. Eustathius, ad Dionysii Perieg. 209, where the Nasamones are said to derive their name in tlvos /^acriAeixravTos ;
Herodotus iv. 1 5 5, 159, 164, 168. Herodotus (iv. 155) says that in the Libyan tongue the word /3(xttos signifies "a
king." Cf. Hesychius, in verb., which cannot, however, be regarded as independent evidence ; and Acesander, De Cyrene,
Frag. 5 in FHG = Sehol. in Find. Pyth. iv. I, At/3ues yixp /3o.ttovs toijs /3aorA.eas Xeyovcriv . . . The origin of this much
discussed word is unknown. 3 Pliny viii. 40 . . . Garamantum regent. i Diodorus Sic. iii. 49. 3.
5 Procopius, Debelh Vandal, ii. 10. 6 Mela i. 8. 1 j p artS ch, Die Berbem, etc., p. 15.
8 Corippus, Johannis iv. 333 ; J. Partsch, he. cit. » Procopius, of. cit. ii. 6. 10 Ibid. i. 25:
11 Vide infra, p. 129 ; cf. Eustathius, ad Dionysii Perieg. 209, and Dio Chrysostomus, Orat. 71, De Corporis Cultu,
vol. ii. p. 383 . . . irrepa e'xovrts <=7rt reus Kerc/mAxus 6p0d, &cnrep Nao-a/icoves . . . Cf. Corippus, Johannis iv. 907 sq.,
where there seems to be a distinction between a warrior of the common sort and a plumed chieftain (. . . Tiseras de plebe
rebelli Mansitalae pinnatus erat . . .) ; ibid.iv. 972 (Pinnatum Antifan . . .), and vii. 543 (. . . Alacanz.a . . . pinnatus . . .) ;
and — in reference to the general Nasamonian custom — ibid. vi. 510, Nasamon pinnatus. .
vl Mela i. 8 . . primores sagis veluntur.
SOCIETY AND GOVERNMENT 117
The ancient evidence suggests that the Libyan chieftainship was often, if not
regularly, associated with the priesthood. In the Dahlah Stela, a document of the
XXIIIrd Dynasty, recording a dispute in connection with a well among the half-Egyptian-
ized Libyans of the oasis, is mentioned " the son of the chief of the Me(shwesh) ;
chief of a district ; prophet of Hathor ; . . . prophet of Sutekh ; . . . Wayheset." 1 The
same Wayheset is more briefly termed in the same inscription the " prophet and chief
Wayheset," 2 or simply " the chief, Wayheset." 3 That something of the sacred char-
acter of the priest-king may be manifested in the Adyrmachid droit de cuissage has been
already pointed out. A more certain indication of the union of sacred and temporal
duties in the person of the chief is seen in the account given by Silius Italicus of the
warrior-priest Nabis, a Libyan in the army of Hannibal. Nabis is described as an
Ammonian chief, splendidly armed, who, feeling himself under the protection of
Amon, rides fearlessly through the thick of battle, shouting the name of his god.
From his helm depend the sacred fillets of Amon, and his dress, of which an attempt
is made to despoil him at his death, is that of a priest. 4 Iernas, a Syrtic prince who
figures in the 'Johannis of Corippus, 5 also appears as a fighting chief and as a priest. The
leader, around whom the Berbers of the Aures rallied to withstand the Arabs, was the
queen-priestess el-Kahinah ; 6 and although this and the evidence already cited are in-
sufficient to prove definitely that any sacred offices were regularly attached to the
chieftainship, the other instances in which such was the case encourage the belief that
the Libyan kings had religious as well as secular duties.
Little is known of the way in which the conduct of the rulers was ordered so as to
differentiate it from that of the simple tribesmen. Doubtless many little observances and
restraints marked the chief as clearly as did his material insignia. One curious restriction
observed by the Numidian chieftains is mentioned by a Roman writer, who says that the #
native kings were not allowed to be kissed by any of their subjects because by this the
dignity of the ruler would have been impaired. 7
In conclusion of this brief outline of the sociology and government of the Eastern
Libyans, it may be said that the ancient institutions probably differed in no vital way
from those of the more primitive Berber tribes of the present day. Of course among the
sedentary tribes law and order prevailed to a greater extent than among those " people
always ready for rapine and rapid incursions, accustomed to live by plunder and blood-
shed," 8 who dwelt in the interior ; and it must not be forgotten that, at the time of the
invasions, the power of amalgamation among those Libyans who dwelt within striking
distance of Egypt showed itself to be of a very formidable nature.
1 BAR iv. § 726. 2 BAR iv. § 727. 3 BAR iv. § 728. 4 Silius Italicus xv. 672 sqq.
Corippus, Johannis ii. 109, iv. 66j sq., 1 138, et alibi; J. Partsch, op. cit. p. 15, notices this indication of theocracy,
but has not brought other evidence to bear on the question.
6 From < m£ praesagivit, hariolatus fait. Ibn Haldun, Kitab el 'Ibar, trans, vol. i. pp. 213, 340; H. Fournel, Les
Berbers, vol. i. pp. 215, 218.
7 Valerius Maximus ii. 6. 17 : Ne Numidiae quidem reges vituperandi, qui more gentis suae nulli mortalium
osculum ferebant. Quidquid enim in excelso fastigio posit um est, humili et trita consuetudine, quo sit verier abilius, vacuum esse
convenit. 8 Ammianus Marcellinus xviii. 6. 2. Said of the Ausuriani.
CHAPTER VI
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
The Eastern Libyans in general appear to have been but scantily clad ; and just as in
Arabia even the kings of the Nabataeans wore only sandals and a purple loin-cloth, 1 so
in North Africa the majority of the inhabitants wore, even in Roman times, so few
clothes as to justify the phrases nudi Garamantes 2 and Nasamon nudus 3 of the
poet Lucan. The Byzantine general Solomon, exhorting his troops, emphasized
the fact that the Africans were practically naked ; 4 and Procopius remarks that the
Libyan dress consisted of but one rough tunic which the wearer did not change within
the year. 5 Yet such as it was, perhaps because of its very scantiness, to foreign eyes the
African costume was distinctive. Herodotus, writing of the Adyrmachidae, observes
that whereas they resembled the Egyptians in their manners, they wore the dress of the
Libyans. 6
The simplest cloth garment of the tribesmen, though by no means the commonest,
was the kilt, which in Egyptian representations is seen as early as the XVIIIth Dynasty. 7
A modern writer, 8 to be sure, has cited as an early example of the Libyan kilt a proto-
dynastic ivory carving, which he adduces as evidence indicating the Libyan origin of the
Egyptian waist-cloth ; but as the ivory in question represents not a Libyan but an
Asiatic 9 this conclusion cannot be accepted. The best representations are those of the
faience tiles from Medinet Habu (XXth Dynasty) shown in the Frontispiece. The
Libyan loin-cloth, from these representations, appears as a very simple kilt girded
above the waist and hanging to a little above the knee. A detail in the Thothmes IV.
1 Strabo xvi. p. 784.
2 Lucan iv. 334 ; cf. Lucian, De Dipsadibus § 2, where the Garamantes are described as an agile, light-clad tribe of
tent-dwellers.
3 Lucan xi. 429. 4 Procopius, De bello Vandaliro ii. 1 1. '•> Ibid. ii. 6.
a Herodotus iv. 168. 1 -£ e \\ el-Amarna tombs.
s W. M. F. Petrie, Royal Tombs, Part i. p. 23 sq. and PI. xvii. fig. 30 = PL XII. Figs. 12, 13.
9 The ivory, which Petrie, loc. at., calls a " gaming-reed," bears an Asiatic ethnic in archaic hieroglyphs.
For another error of identification, see idem, lllahun, Kahun, and Gurob, pi. xix. fig. 43. It is G. Sergi {Mediterranean
Race, p. 77, fig. 2), however, who has made the grossest of these mistakes — he has reproduced as " Tamahu " Libyan a
typical Syrian head.
11S
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
119
panel, given in Fig. 31, shows that the kilt, at least when worn with the penistasche, was
open in front.
The long robe, which first appears in New Empire times, though not worn by the
majority of the Libyans, was at least more common
than the kilt. From the statement of Mela, 1 and from
a consensus of the monumental evidence, it is clear that
the long robe was a mark of dignity and rank ; and it
was as such that long robes, fastened at the shoulders
with golden clasps, were given out to the Libyan
princes by the Byzantines, when the former received
their annual confirmation in office. The Libyan robe
is mentioned by Strabo, who describes it as loose and
with wide borders ; 2 and in late Roman times Mauri
ot Corippus are mentioned as wearing the coloured
tunica* or the stragula} The cut of these robes, as
seen in the Egyptian representations, was obviously
derived from the skin cloaks which were worn in
classical times. The cloth robe was essentially an
elongated piece ot stuff, cut wider at the top than at
the bottom, so as to fold around the shoulders (Fig. 10, PI. II. Fig. 3, and PI. III.).
The prolonged corners (tabs) of the upper part were often knotted across the chest as
would have been the fore-paws in the case of a skin garment. •' A more elaborate form
had a rudimentary sleeve, and was clasped across one shoulder, as seen in the case of
the four Libyans in the painting from the tomb of Seti I. (Plate III.).
The robes were regularly open from top to bottom, and ungirt," the belt of the
sheath or of the kilt bein°; inside. The stuffs of which the robes were made were
sometimes ornamented with coloured designs {Frontis. and Plate III.),' and were further
decorated with applied pieces sewn to the garment, generally in the corners (Plate III.,
.B, D), or at the waist (Plate III., A, B, C, and the cross on the robe of D). The robes
were regularly bordered, as Strabo remarked, though the Egyptian notices show no border
which could be called " wide " ; s in some cases they were fringed (ct. Figs. 1 1 and 12).
In late times the tunic seems to have been popular among the more civilized
Libyans. Two warriors on a monument of late date, now in Constantinople, are seen
Fig. 10.
1 Mela i. 8 . . primores sagis velantur, etc. J Strabo xvii. p. S2S.
3 Corippus, Johannis ii. 130 sqq., vii. 189 sqq. ; cf. Procopius, De bello l r andalico ii. 6.
J Corippus, Johannis \\. 134, 1 8 1. {Bene emendavit Petschenig ad locc. citt.)
■' Cf. the Libyan fallen beneath the feet of the Great Chief, in Plate IV.
Cf. Silius Italicus ii. 78 sq. As, however, the poet is there speaking of the princess Asbyte, he has probably
in mind the typical Amazon of classic art.
7 Cf. also the Libyan captive shown in I. Rosellini, Monument}, vol. ii. p. 91 (second throne from the left).
8 A robe bordered with a yellow stripe (fine lines in red and blue) is shown in J. F. Champollion, Monuments de
r £gspte, etc., vol. i. PI. I" (the fallen Libyan).
120
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
wearing garments of this sort— a kind of sleeveless shirt belted in at the waist (Fig. 13).
Two small Libyco-Roman reliefs of Christian times, discovered by Barth at Shabet
Umm el-Harab, show in one case two date-gatherers who are wearing tunics with
Fig. 1 1.
Fig. 12.
sleeves or half-sleeves (Fig. 14), while in another two men of rank (?) are seen sitting in
a small boat, enveloped in long cloaks (Fig. 15). These last examples, however, betray
too strong a foreign influence to be regarded as
eood evidence on African costume.
The question arises as to whence were
derived the stuffs of the Libyan chieftains'
robes. Cloth of good quality was not at any
time common throughout Eastern Libya, as
is proved by the extensive use of skin gar-
ments. Parts of the country, it is true, have
exported 1 as well as imported 2 cloth fabrics
anciently and in mediaeval times ; but it is
not easy to believe that the flowered and
decorated robes worn by the chiefs were made
by a people who, to a great extent, used leather
for their garments, and who have not, in
many localities, come even to this day to employ the shuttle in weaving. 3 If the
Egyptian representations may here be trusted in detail, it might be inferred from them
that the cloth-stuffs were obtained from the same quarter as that from which the
1 Vopiscus, Vita Aureliani xii. ; cf. Solinus xxix. For the dyed cloths of Meninx see the Notit. Impcr. Occident.
Ixii. ; cf. Pliny, Hist. Nat. ix. 36.
- Silks and brocades were brought to Tripolitana from Italy in mediaeval times, while woollens were sent back in
exchange (E. de la Primaudaie, Lc Littoral de la Tripolitaine, pp. 129, 132 .(</.).
3 Cf. Maclvcr and Wilkin, Libyan Notes, p. 69 ;;.
Fig. 13.
h
<
<;
09
D
X-
w
h
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
I 21
Eastern Libyans seem to have received their metal weapons — viz. from the Sherden.
In this connection it is interesting to note the similarity between one of the designs
seen on the robes, and that incised upon a fragment of Sardinian pottery; as shown
Fit
Fie
in Fig. 1 6 a, h. The historical relations between the Sherden and the Libyans, and
the geographical proximity of the two peoples, make it at least possible that the
Q former supplied the latter with their better textiles. 1
Mention has been made above of the resem-
. . blance of the long robe to a garment made of the
undressed skin of an animal. That skins were
s/ // //^ % largely used for clothing is supported by ample
XXVVxX v testimony. Strabo remarks of the North Africans
b.
in general that " they wear the skins of lions,
panthers, and bears, and sleep in them " ; and that the Libyan
"cloak is a skin . . . which serves also as a breastplate." 2 This
last statement recalls the lines of Lucan : —
. . . Afer
Venator^ ferrique sunul fiducui /ion est
Vestibus iratos laxis opcnri /cones. 3
a. FlG i6 Mela, having mentioned that the notables wear the scigi/m, adds
that the other Libyans of the interior go clad in the skins of wild
or domestic animals. 4 The Macae regularly wore goat-skins : —
. . . humerosque tegunt velamine capri
Saetigeroc'
The same writer describes a typical Marmarid as being clad in skins. ti Finally,
1 W. M. Miiller, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. p. 126, states his belief in the Libyan origin of the chiefs' robes.
He is at least correct in noting that they arc non-Egyptian.
- Strabo xvii. p. 82S.
3 Lucan iv. 665 sqq. ; ct. Pliny viii. 16, where a Gactulian shepherd is said to have stopped a charging lion by
casting his cloak over the beast's head.
4 Mela i. S; cf. Hippocrates, De mortis, vol. ii. p. 375, for domestic, and Aelian, Hist. Nat. xiv. 16, for
wild, goats' skins.
fj Silius Italicus iii. 276 sq. ° Ibid. v. 437 sq.
i22 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
it may be mentioned that the Libyan contingent in the army of Xerxes were dressed
in leather. 1 The cut of these skin or leather garments doubtless varied ; the undressed
skin was probably merely hung from the neck, as among the Bedawin of Sinai at the
present time ; 2 the dressed hides were probably worked up into some sort of shirt
or jacket, such as those used among the Imushagh to-day.'
The use of robes, kilts, jackets, etc., thus far described in this chapter, while broadly
diffused among the ancient North African peoples, cannot be regarded as the most
characteristic feature of their dress. The garment which deserves that title is the
protective sheath for the generative organs, conveniently known to archaeologists as
the penistasche, already several times mentioned.
Sheaths of this sort are not peculiar to any one people or period. Similar protec-
tions were worn in Minoan Crete, 4 and are used to-day in South Africa. 5 In predynastic
and protodynastic Egypt the penistasche was known, 6 though it was not, as a recent
writer has stated, 7 a national garment in universal use. It has been by some
supposed that the word A ^^ V "^ H m' #- r *-"*"9'> found occasionall y in New
Empire texts, was the Egyptian designation for these sheaths ; but the word really
means "foreskin," or "phallus with a foreskin," as Breasted has pointed out. 8
The earliest instance of the use of the sheath among historic Libyans is found in
the Sa-hu-re and Ne-user-re reliefs of the Vth Dynasty. By classical times the
penistasche seems to have been largely succeeded by some less noticeable form of
covering, since the Greek and Roman writers, who would have been impressed by its
peculiarity, make no mention of it.
The form of the sheath, as shown in the Ne-user-re reliefs, is given in Fig. ij.
Like the archaic Egyptian ones (Fig. 18 a, b), the protective case depends from a
girdle, the manner in which the organ was inserted being clearly seen in the figure.
Fig. 19 shows a similar sheath worn by one of the Ne-user-re captives, which differs
from the preceding by its being passed up under the belt, instead of falling outside of
it. In the New Empire, the penistasche is regularly represented as having been passed
up under the girdle, as in Figs. 20, 21, 22. Only occasionally in the New Empire
1 Herodotus vii. 71.
2 C. M. Doughty, Wanderings in Arabia, vol. i. p. 64.. The Sinai Bedawin, according to Doughty, wear "gazelle
or other skins hanging from the neck, which," as they will, " they shift round their bodies as the wind blows."
8 G. F. Lyon, Travels in Northern Africa, p. no. "A leathern kaftan is also much worn, of their \scil. the
Imushagh] own manufacture, as are leather shirts of the skins of antelopes, very neatly sewed and well prepared." For
such a shirt, see ibid., plate facing p. 1 10.
4 R. Dussaud, Les Civilisations pr'ehelleniques, etc., fig. 28 ; R. M. Burrows, The Discoveries in Crete, plate i.
(Jrontis.), A (top register). 6 Cf. the micht of the Kaffirs. See W. M. Muller, of. cit. vol. ii. p. 121, note I.
6 J. E. Quibell, Hierakonpolis, Part i. Plate viii. fig. 1 = Plate X. Fig. 2 ; Plate viii. fig. 3 = Plate VII. sketch, lower
register, right = Plate X. Fig. 1. W. M. F. Petrie, Diospolis Parva, Plate v. lowest register, B; Berlin Museum, No.
1 508+ = A. Erman, Egyptian Religion, fig. 4 ; G. A. Reisner, Archaeol. Survey of Nubia, vol. i. text, p. 47, fig. 34, grave
7:119 ; Plates, PI. 66 b, 20. Cf. also E. Meyer, Geschichte des Altertums, vol. i. part ii. § 167 (p. 50).
7 G. E. Smith, The Ancient Egyptians, etc., p. 77 sq.
8 Cf. W. M. Muller, Asien und Europa, p. 358 n. ; J. Capart, Les Debuts de I' art en Egypte, p. 55. BAR iii.
§ 587 note h ; iv. § 52.
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
123
Fig. 17.
Fig. 18.
Fig. 19.
124
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
are there clear cases in which the sheath falls outside the girdle ; an instance is given
in Fig. 23. Often, particularly in the representations of the Meshwesh, the sheaths
Fig. 20.
Fig.
carry an ornamental ball 1 near the lower end, giving to them a tasselled appearance,
as in Figs. 21, 23, 24. In the last example, the sheath, it may be observed, is
Fig.
seemingly supported by a baldric. This, if it is really the case, is a unique instance ■
it is more probable that this penistasche was held in place by the belt, and appears to
1 A large bead ?
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
I2 5
depend from the baldric merely because of the artist's carelessness. Similarly, from
Fig. 23 one might suppose that the loop of the girdle was really part of the penistasche
which passed down under the belt and was
then tucked up under it. That such may
occasionally have been the case seems not im-
probable ; but in most instances the loop was
independent of the sheath. Thus, in Figs. 21,
22, 24 are seen clear examples of the fastening
of the sheath quite without any loop ; in
Figs. 17 and 19 the loop, from its character,
is almost surely a part of the belt ; 1 and in
Fig. 25 is shown a loop (inverted !) without
the penistasche.
Fig. 26 shows with great detail a sheath
either Libyan, or very closely resembling the
Libyan. This sheath is here reproduced from
Fig. 24.. the fine XlXth Dynasty statue of a Libyan
divinity discovered at Karnak and now in the
Cairo Museum. In cross-section this penistasche is square, and is kept in
place by the girdle, which is tied over it with a square knot.
The types of penistasche shown in the figures seem to have been
common to chiefs and tribesmen, and to all Libyans alike. It can only
be said that those guards with ornamental ends do not appear until the
advent of the Meshwesh in the New Empire, though there is too little evidence extant
from an earlier period to make safe an assertion that they did not exist
before that event. It is also noteworthy that the younger male children
of the Sa-hu-re relief (Plate VII.) do not wear this garment ; it was
therefore probably a sign of adult manhood.
The materials of which these curious garments were made are
not known. That leather was in some cases used early in Egypt is
certain, while in South Africa both grasses and wood are employed.
From the forms of the Libyan sheaths it appears that they were
occasionally slightly flexible, which suggests that the former two
materials, or one of them, were those in use. It is at least certain
that the cases were not, as Naville has suggested, 2 made of metal, either
in Libya or in Egypt, at any period. In some cases the sheaths were coloured. That
shown in Fig. 21 is longitudinally painted red, blue, and white, the ball at the end
1 Cf. Plate II. Fig. 5, Louvre bronze statuette, where the silver loop is clearly seen to be quite independent of the
penistasche. The latter in this instance is remarkably small.
2 E. Naville, Figurines e'gyptie/tues de I'epoque archdiqtie, II. in RT, xxii. p. 68. Naville speaks of sheaths d'une
mature resistante, telle que du metal, du bois on du cuir cptiis.
Fig
Fig. 26.
I 26
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
being painted with the same colours, in concentric circles. 1 By their exaggerated
size and semi-ornamental character, these sheaths, it may be remarked in conclusion,
served, like the " chastity aprons " of the Zulu women, not only to protect the parts
they covered but to emphasize the sex of the wearer as well.
Belts and girdles were, as has been seen, as common as the sheaths they supported.
The phrase of Silius Italicus —
Discinctos inter Libycos popn/os, 2
has only a general meaning, signifying " among the loose-robed, or lightly-clad, Libyan
peoples." As seen on the Egyptian monuments, the Libyan girdles were like some
modern polo-belts, cut broader in the back than in the front. Just how they were
fastened is not clear ; but from the frequency with which the loops are represented on
the left thigh of the wearer, it would seem that in the majority of cases the belt went
Fig.
Fig. 28.
Fig. 29.
more than once around the waist, the end being then pushed down between the body and
the girdle, and afterward again brought up and tucked in. It is possible that belt,
loop, and sheath were sometimes made in one piece. In this case the sheath would be first
adjusted, the length of the girdle would be passed under it after going around the waist,
and the loop would then be made as mentioned. The material of the belts was
probably usually plain leather, :i though this was not the case with the ornamental belts worn
by chiefs of the Ne-user-re reliefs (Figs. 17 and 19). Here the loop is an ornamental
appendage to the belt, which itself was made seemingly of leathern thongs (Fig. 27, B-B)
laid together, the outside ones (a-a, a'-a') being larger than any of the others. At equal
distances along this belt, and at right angles to it, were introduced in trios, little bars of
shell, ivory, or other material (m-m, m'-m'). The whole was fastened in front (Fig. 19)
with some simple sort of clasp. The loop attached to this belt was apparently of leather,
either (like the belt itself) of thongs, or (more probably) of a curved strip on which
thongs (Fig. 28,
a-a
were sewn. The space between the thongs was covered
with little scales (/;, //, //'), which were perhaps sectors of shell like those found in a
1 For examples of coloured sheaths, vide J. F. Champollion, Monuments de I'Egypte, etc. vol. i. pi. xi. (penistasche fluted
in black, red-brown, and yellow) ; PI. xvii. (red, black, yellow) ; PI. xcii. 4 (green and yellow ; cf. I. Rosellini, Monument'/,
vol. i. pi. Ixiii. 2).
'-' Silius Italicus 11. 56.
1 Belts of coloured leather arc shown in J. F. Champollion, op. cit. vol. i. plate xi., plate xvii., plate xcii. 4; and
I. Rosellini, loc. cit.
w
h
<
Oh
X
h
CO
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Q
2:
<;
w
h
O
2;
CO
f-,
w
CO
o
g
s
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
127
Fig. 30.
" C Group" grave in Nubia 1 (Fig. 29, a), applied in the manner shown in the sketch
(Fig. 29, b).
In passing from the question of belts to that of foot-wear, one remarks that, while on
the Egyptian monuments even the sheykhs and emirs of the Libyans almost invariably
appear bare-footed, this seems to be due to the indifference of the
Egyptian artist. On one of Medinet Habu tiles a chieftain is
seen wearing sandals the latchets of which are clearly shown
(Fig. 30), and it is recorded of Meryey that in his flight from
Memphis he left his "sandals ... in haste behind him." 2
In the previous chapter has been cited the passage of Procopius with regard to the
insignia annually bestowed by the Byzantine government upon the Libyan notables,
and the fact that gilt sandals were among the gifts has been noted. Corippus speaks
of the native foot-gear as cruda Maurica, 2 and no doubt this simple form of protection
was widely known. Besides sandals, some
of the Libyans had leg-wrappings, like
those of the Sardinian peasants of the
present day, made either of leather i or
of woollen/'
Head-gear was certainly rare among
the Eastern Libyans as a whole, despite
the intensity of the summer suns. The
Libyans of the Egyptian monuments,
especially the Meshwesh, wear sometimes
head-shawls contained by bandeaux or
fillets (cf. PI. II. Figs. 7, 9), and the
skull-cap was not unknown, as is proved
by the example worn by the woman of
the Medinet Habu tiles (Frontis.) and the
Libyans of the Thothmes IV. panel (Fig.
31). Perhaps the hats of the type worn
by the king in the Arcesilaus vase (the
" Silphium-weighing ") is African. At
all events it is closely paralleled by the
hats of some of the modern Imushagh,
Fig. 31.
which are beautifully woven of grasses ; and it is not Greek in type. (The hat of
Arcesilaus II. is shown in Fig. 32,^; a modern North African hat, as worn in the
Sahara, is seen in the same figure, b.) Although no classical notices speak of Libyan
1 G A Reisner op cit vol i Plates, Plate 70 b, 13. In this case it must be observed that the shell-sectors were not
applied to a 'surface, 'but were strung with other beads. Similar plate-beads occur in the Egyptun " Pan-Graves."
PP . BAR iii. § <8 + . 3 Corippus, Johannis ii. .37. ^™ b ° *"'• P" 8 3>-
5 Silius Italicus iii. 280 . Adymachidis laevo tegmma crure.
128
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
sun-hats, it appears from a passage in the Johannis that in late times head-clouts were
worn. These cloths were tied beneath the chin, nodo suffalta tenaci?
a
Fig. 32.
The dress of the Libyan women was as rude as that of the men or even ruder.
Herodotus, after stating his belief that the Aegis and dress of the statues of Athena were
derived by the Greeks from the Libyans, continues : —
For, except that the garments of the Libyan women are of leather, and their fringes made of
leathern thongs instead of serpents, in all else the dress of both is exactly alike. . . . For the Libyan
women wear over their dress" goat-skins stript of their hair, fringed at their edges, and coloured
with vermilion. 15
In connection with this passage it may be observed that in some classical repre-
sentations the fore-tabs of Athena's Aegis
depend from her arms in a manner strikingly
paralleled in the woman's figure of the
Ghadames relief (Fig. 33) ; in other Greek
sculptures and vase-paintings the Aegis falls
loosely over the back and breast.
The evidence of the Ghadames relief,
just referred to, also points to the use of a
long single (?) robe, the details of which
cannot, unfortunately, be made out from the
drawing of Duveyrier.
Apart from the data just presented, the
Egyptian monuments and the Slunt sculptures
give some further information with regard
to Libyan feminine attire. In the Slunt
sculptures, though the men are shown with-
1 Corippus, Johannis ii. 136, viii. 192. In both passages it is spoken of as a palla, here a sort of shawl.
- This suggests a cloth undergarment ; cf. Strabo, loc. cit.
'•> Herodotus iv. 189. W. R. Smith {Religion of the Semites, p. 4.37) infers that this thonged skin garment was a sacred
dress, because Herodotus compares it to the Aegis of Athena. This seems hazardous, since {a) Herodotus is half-suggest-
ing a Libyan origin for the Greek goddess because, inter alia, the Aegis recalls the dress of the Libyan women, who in
general use the fringed girdle (the modern rait) ; and (&) because to-day throughout the Sudan and in Nubia the roht is a
common and purely secular garment. For the colour cf. J. R. Pacho, Voyage dans la Marmarique, etc., p. 59 ; G. F.
Lyon, op. fit. p. 155 ; cf. ibid. p. 139; and, as an interesting parallel, the "rams' skins dyed red" which covered the
tabernacle in the wilderness {Exodus xxvi. 14.).
Fir
33-
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
i 29
out any discernible sort of dress, the women appear wearing a simple skirt or kirtle
which, confined at the waist, falls in simple folds to the feet (Fig. 34). This repre-
sentation belongs to Roman times, but in the Beni Hasan tomb-paintings the same
garment is seen worn by Libyan women ; the skirts there shown tall from the waist to
the ankles, and are so belted in that a sort of koXtto? or fold is formed in front (PI. V
Figs. 1 and 3). The bottom of the skirt is either scalloped, or else the wavy line along
*?'
'M$$ v
twit <
■■■:■ 4m/
W ^ ?}>\'''t/$p*-«
^m
: 1 mwm
■xn: ^-
lp f it 1 1 1 i I f S - 11
wffl
'Mm
c J^'"^ii
m
mm
Fig. 34. (After Haimann.)
the bottom is intended to show a vertical plaiting. In the Beni Hasan paintings, the
skirts are coloured red.
Since personal ornamentation precedes dress in cultural development, it is not
surprising to find that whereas the clothes of the Libyans were of the simplest, they had
evolved a number of such decorations as collars, ear-rings, armlets, etc.
The most characteristic Libyan ornaments were the ostrich-plumes, which are
almost universally worn by the warriors of the Egyptian monuments. When absent, as
sometimes happens, it is for one of three reasons : the artist has sacrificed them to the
exigencies of space ; they are made impossible by the difficulty of working in the round;
or the subjects of representation are ordinary tribesmen who have no right to the
distinction. For a distinction it was, although, to judge from the Ne-user-re and
i 3 o
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Sa-hu-re reliefs, one not known in the Old Empire. 1 A chief, except for the first two
reasons noted above, does not appear without the plume after Middle Empire times ;
but he might appear with but one feather (e.g. PL II. Fig. 8), even, apparently, when
the head of a great confederacy. For in the Merneptah record it is said of Meryey,
after his defeat, that " an evil fate removed his plume." 2 The Delta dynasts, also, of
the Late New Empire are characterized in the Piankhi stela as " the chiefs who wore
the feather.""' At Umm Beydah, near Aghurmi (Siwah Oasis), the prince kneeling
before Amon wears but a single plume. 4 On the other hand, cases occur in which the
wearing of two plumes (Fig. 35, PL III., etc.) signifies that the chief so decorated was
superior in rank to those who wore but one each. This is paralleled among the
Sudanese seen on the Egyptian monuments ; the more important of them wear
each two feathers, while their followers have but one each/' Just how the Libyan
FlG. 35.
Fig.
plumes were fastened in the hair is not clear, but it is probable that they were merely
stuck in the root of a side-lock. {; Among the Sudanese the plumes were often held in
place by a bandeau, and so inserted as to have their breadth in a vertical plane, in contra-
distinction to the Libyan fashion of inserting them with the breadth right and left.
(Cf- Fi g- 35 with Fi g- 3 6 -)
Like most primitive peoples, the Eastern Libyans had ear ornaments, both rings
(e.g. Pis. I., II., VI.) and studs (cf. PL II. 7, 8) being known. Various types of the
former, which were worn always in the lobe of the ear, and never, as so frequently
1 W H. Midler, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. p. 121 n. 1. Mailer rightly states that the plume is not a
tribal distinction but a personal one. He further suggests that each leather is the token of a slain enemy, as among the
Somalis and Gallas. This hardly seems possible if the consensus of the monumental evidence is taken into consideration,
though it is quite possible that the plume was the mark of a tried fighting-man. It is worth noting that the wearing of
feathers was especially associated, in classical opinion, with the Nasamones. This people, when thev travelled abroad,
wore wings (irTepa.) upright on the head; a usage which is in a manner paralleled by the Amerind use of war-bonnets.
Vide supra, p. 116, n. II, for the citation from Dio Chrysostomus, Or.it. lx\ii. ; De corporis cuku, vol. ii. p. 383
(cf. Eustathius ad Diouys. Perieg. 209). The wearing of feather head-dresses in the early Mediterranean was not
uncommon. Cf. the Pclesct (Philistines) of the New Empire monuments, and the heads of Sardus Pater on the Roman
coins of Sardinia.
2 BAR iii. §610. 3 BAR iv. §873.
1 G. Steindorf, Ditrch die Libysche M'iiste zur Amonsoase, fig. 71, p. 95, top register, right.
■"' As in the scene shown LD, vol. iii. pi. 1 17.
,; Cf. G. A. Rcisncr, Archaeological Survey of Nubia, vol. i. p. 40, fig. 29 = grave 7:250. This burial (a woman) had
a number of ostrich-plumes thrust into the hair.
PLATE V.
[Ij [2J
LIBYAN TRIBUTARIES.
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
131
happens ,n modern Nubia, in the upper edge, are here reproduced from the Egyptian
monuments in Fig. 37 , /,, ,, d , e, f t g, and h. The ear-ring shown in Fig. 37, a, is
one actually preserved on a cranium which is apparently that of a Libyan; 3 it is of
Fir, 37.
copper. The ear-ring shown in Fig. 37, /, comes from a proto-Berber grave in the
Algerian Sahara, and is here reproduced because of its analogy to Fig. i,j, e, f.
01 the ear-rings seen on the monuments, b occurs in the Vth Dynasty and
later, while the others are of the New Empire. Fig. 37, c appears to have
been a simple twist of metal, while d, e, f\ g, and h have little bars or plates
attached to the bottom. Fig. 38 shows the ear of a Libyan prince from a relief
at Beyt el-Waly. In this case not only is there an ear-ring, but also a plug so
inserted as to change the shape of the ear. This is the only clear piece of
evidence in regard to the use of ear-studs of this type among the Libyans, but
it is probable that, since the fashion was known, it was not uncommon. Small
studs are apparently indicated in the examples given, PI. II. 7, 8.
Of the necklaces and pendants of the Eastern Libyans, the latter were especially
characteristic in design. In the Sa-hu-re relief ot the Vth Dynasty both men and
women wear collars (PI. VII.), which appear to have been made up ot strings of flat circular
beads such as have been found in the proto-Berber graves ot the Algerian Sahara, and of
little rosettes (?). In the Medinet Habu tiles, two Libyans are seen wearing necklaces
(Frontis.), one of which is elaborated with attached beads. The pendants, of which
mention has been made above, are seldom represented. The best early examples, from
the Abusir reliefs, show the curious forms given in Fig. 17 and PI. VII. It is not
possible, so unlike are these to Egyptian pectoral ornaments, to
say definitely how they were made. They are identical in
L__ design with the pectoral ornaments sometimes seen in repre-
sentations of the Aegean tributaries on the Egyptian monu-
ments, and were probably of spherical or tubular glazed beads.
The part that went around the neck seems to have been made of flat shell beads such
1 W. M. F. Petrie, Diospolis Parva, pi. xxv., and there given the cemeten number Y354. No mention of the head,
however, appears in the text. A letter from A. C. Mace, v\ho assisted in the work at Diospolis, gives me his opinion that
the head is Coptic, because the ear-ring slightly suggests a cross. This slight evidence is overborne, I think, by the side-
lock (see Fig. 45) ; but the case must remain for ever doubtful for lack of proper records.
Fig.
39-
I 3 2
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Fig.
40.
White
Blue
"Rg3"
as those found in the "C Group" graves of Middle Empire Nubia, here re-
presented so as to show the original manner of stringing (Fig. 39). A form of pectoral
ornament quite different is shown in PI. V. 2 : this pendant may have been of nacre or
of metal.
Over the pectorals in the Abusir reliefs pass the crossed bands which were so
common a feature of Libyan ornament or dress at all periods. 1 The purpose oi the
bands was probably to confine a skin cloak,' J though they are
often highly ornamental in character, and are frequently worn
^llt'lfiilfl if b b y Lib y ans wno are otherwise, except for the penistasche, quite
. im \m ^fflHHBi 1 ,? nude.
' The decorative character of the bands is well seen in the
Ne-user-re reliefs. The details of these bands are shown in Fig.
40. Two rows of rosettes (a-a, a' -a') seem to have been applied
to a leather strip at the edges, while the middle zone was overlaid with a series oi
oblong plate-beads (b-b). Along either side of the lines of rosettes run leather (?)
cords, as in the belts worn by the same princes. What seem to have been plate-beads
may have been such nacre oblongs as are shown in Fig. 39. These beads, already
mentioned as belonging to the " Pan-Grave " people of Egypt and the " C Group "
of Middle Empire Nubia, would, if applied to a leather
strip, give exactly the effect seen in the Libyan band
(Fig. 40, b-b). Ornamental in character are also the
bands worn by the Libyan prince represented in the
temple at Beyt el-Waly. The bands are there of leather (?)
coloured as seen in Fig. 41. The Egyptian artist seems here to have copied, or at
least tried to reproduce, an original pair of Libyan bands, tor the colour sequence is
non-Egyptian in character. 15
Bracelets were apparently not as common among the Libyans as they are among
the Imushagh of modern times. 4 It may be, however, that anciently they were more
common than one would at first glance suppose, and that they appear to have been
unusual only because on the monuments they were drawn in colours which have not
survived. Armillae and bracelets are indicated on the arms and wrists of the Libyans of
the Abusir reliefs, and of the Medinet Habu tiles (PI. VII. and Frontis.).
The princes of the Libyans wore, in addition to the usual ornaments, a curious
decoration which was employed as a mark of distinction by the Egyptian kings also.
This was the animal's tail which depended from the back of the belt (Figs. 42 and 43).
1 W. M. Mtlller, op. cit. vol. ii. p. 135, states that the cross-bands are not common in Libyan representations. This
error must be due to carelessness, since about 70 per cent of the Libyans represented wear these bands.
Cf. F. Deniker, Races of Man, fig. 48, p. 172,3 Fucgian wearing a primitive mantle of sealskin with crossed
bands.
'■'' G. Roeder, verbal communication.
4 They are characteristic ot the Saharan Berbers, who attach a ceremonial importance to them.
Yellow
Red
Fk..
White
Blue etc
+ i-
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
J 33
Fig. 42.
The use of the caudiform appendage is found among numerous primitive peoples, 1 and
probably in Egypt and Libya had its origin in a desire to imitate the aspect of totem
animals, or from an archaism which
preserved the memory of the time
when hunting-men wore the skins
of animals taken in the chase. 2
The Libyan tail was apparently
sometimes weighted, and had an
ornamented " head " that passed up
under the belt (Figs. 17, 19, 42).
The only monumental evidence of the wearing of leg-rings is afforded by the
Thothmes IV. panel, Fig. 31, where one figure wears an anklet on the right foot.
Herodotus states that the women of the Adyrmachidae wore upon each leg a ring of
bronze. 3 With a special significance, as has been noted, the women of the Gindanes
wore leathern anklets. 4
It is to be presumed that the Eastern Libyans, at least during the later periods,
made use of those semi-precious stones which were found within their territories, and
which they exported through the medium of the Phoenicians and others. No monu-
mental or explicit textual evidence, however, exists in proof of this.
The Libyans indulged to the full that barbarous foppery in regard to the dressing
of the hair which is common to so many primitive people. Strabo, speaking of the
Mauritanians, makes a remark which the Egyptian monumental evidence leads one to
believe would have been in general as applicable to the Eastern Libyans as to the
Western : —
They [the Maurusii] bestow care to improve their looks by plaiting their hair, trimming their
beards, wearing golden ornaments, cleaning their teeth, and by paring their nails ; you would rarely
see them touch one another as they walk, lest they should disturb the arrangement of their hair. 5
The modes of dressing the hair varied among the different tribes, as is clear both from
the monuments and from Herodotus. The women of the Adyrmachidae allowed their
hair to grow long ; 6 the Macae let the locks " about the crown of their heads grow long,
while they clip them close everywhere else," making " their hair resemble a crest " ; 7 the
1 E.g. among the Nagas of Manipur. J. Deniker, op. at., Frontis.
2 W. M. Milller, op. cit. p. 60 sqq. and fig. 69. Muller has carefully noted the varieties of these tails in Egypt, but
makes, perhaps, too nice distinctions. He asserts that the kings' tails differ when they appear as hunters or as rulers
(p. 60, n. 2), and believes that the typical Egyptian royal tail was that of a gnu (p. 64).
3 Herodotus iv. 168.
4 Ibid. iv. 176. For leather armillae, cf. G. A. Reisner, op. cit. vol. i. p. 47, fig. l\,Z™z 7, 1 1°-
5 Strabo xvii. p. 828. 6 Herodotus iv. 168. "' Ibid. iv. 175.
x 34
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Machlyes and the Auseans " both wear their hair long, but the Machlyes let it grow
at the back of the head, while the Auseans have it long in front " ; 1 the Maxyes " let
their hair grow long on the right side of their heads, and shave it close on the left." 2
It is this last-mentioned manner of wearing the hair that is most frequently seen on the
Egyptian monuments, which afford the clearest, as well as the earliest, sources on this
question.
The earliest of this monumental evidence comes from the Vth Dynasty. The
Libyans of that period, as represented in the Abusir reliefs, wear their hair in a peculiar
fashion which is not seen afterwards. The hair, both of men and women (PL VII.)
hangs below the nape of the neck behind, and the locks falling from just behind the
ears hang to the collar-bone. The whole is covered with a head-cloth, which is so
turned up over the forehead as to give, at the first hasty glance, the impression that the
wearers have over their brows each a small uraeus. The children of the Abusir reliefs
wear their hair short, but similarly covered (PL VII.).
The women of later periods have their hair done in fashions different from those
of the men. In some cases, as in one of the Beni Hasan paintings, the hair was drawn
back from the forehead, and curled at the nape of the neck (PL V.) ; or it was simply
drawn back in tresses which fell over the shoulders, the head being covered with a
small cap (Frontis.). In the Ghadames relief, the two female figures wear their hair
in an extraordinary fashion, which is not quite clear
from the only drawing of the original which we possess.
Apparently, part of the hair lay along the nape of the
neck, while the rest, passing through a bandeau to which
was attached a loose head-cloth, hung bushed out behind
(Fig. 33). This head-dress, it may be remarked, may
possibly have been not a regular one, but one peculiar to
priestesses.
The fashions of wearing the hair among the men
of the Sa-hu-re reliefs, as has just been said, are not
exactly paralleled in the later periods. In one of the
Ne-user-re reliefs, however, is seen that dressing of the
hair which in the New Empire is usually associated with
the Meshwesh. 3 The mass of hair falls behind the
shoulders, while a broad unplaited tress hangs from
behind the ear and in front of the shoulder, over the
pectoral muscles (Fig. 17). This closely resembles the
treatment of the hair in the Sa-hu-re reliefs, except that it is not covered, and this
mode is seen in the three New Empire types shown in Figs. 22, 24, 43. By far
1 Herodotus iv. 180. 2 lbil iv _ lgi . cf< Macrobius, Saturnalia i. 26.
3 LD iii. 209, where the inscription may be seen accompanying the figure, the head of which is here shown (fig. 24).
Fig. 43.
PLATE VI.
Fig. i .
Fig. 2.
SMALL GRANITE HEAD IN CAIRO MUSEUM.
FlG . 3.—RELIEF FROM THE TOMB OF HARMHEB.
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
i35
the most usual form of hair-dressing among the Eastern Libyans is that of the side-lock,
as shown in Pis. L, IL, III., IV., etc., or in Figs. 11, 12, 35. This mode is that
always associated with the Rebu, and, rightly or wrongly, given by the Egyptian
artists to most of the Libyans as well, so that the side-lock has come generally to be
recognized by all Egyptologists as a Libyan characteristic. It will be seen from the
figures that there are several varieties in this style of wearing the hair. The lock
might be a twisted tress (as in PL VI. 1, 2), or a plaited braid of several strands (as in
Frontis. A and PL III.), it might hang behind the ear (Fig. 11), or in front of it (cf.
PI. IV.). Also the rest of the hair might be treated in one of several ways. By one
method, the front of the hair was brought to the forehead in tresses, while at the back it
hung naturally (Pis. I., IV., and Fig. 11) ; in another the hair was tressed both in front
and behind (PI. VI. 1, 2 ; Frontis. ; PI. VI. 3),
in some instances the tresses being frizzed
a (PL III.). A double side-lock on one
1 side of the head (PL IV. ; cf. PL I.
Mk Fig. 9, and, for variant, 5) is seen on
i! I two chiefs in a relief at Karnak, and in
' some cases the side-lock was worn on
' 44 ' both sides of the head at once (Fig. 4).
In connection with this it may be suggested
that Libyan captives often appear as wearinj
but one side-lock on the left or on the right
side of the head, according to which profile is
shown. Incidentally, the hieroglyph for the
"west," Iment (Fig. 44), the Libyan land, is seemingly a cap (cf. Frontis.), with a
plume, and two pendants of unequal length which appear to be side-locks. A parallel
is seen among the Imushagh women, who sometimes braid their hair in two side-locks
on the right and left of the head. 1 Generally, however, but one side-lock appears to
have been worn, the hair on the side of the head opposite to it being trimmed at
about the level of the jaw (as in PL VI. 1,2). An actual example of the side-lock is
preserved on the Libyan (?) cranium (seen in Fig. 45), which has already been men-
tioned in this chapter as coming from Diospolis Parva. The tress is there plaited of
three strands, exactly as in a small unpublished Libyan head recently (191 1) exposed
for sale in Cairo."
A different and very rare style of Libyan hair-dressing remains to be mentioned.
It is shown in one of the Beni Hasan paintings (PL V. 2). The hair is there seen to
be confined with some sort of bandeau ornamented with what seem to be shells. It
escapes from the fillet and forms a brush behind the neck.
1 Aymard, Les Touareg, p. 96, pi. 14.
' J Shop of M. Kyticas. Limestone head in round, provenance unknown. Ht. circa 12 cm., lower face badly
damaged, traces of reddish colour on face.
Fig. 45.
136 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
The occurrence of the side-lock among the modern Imushagh women has been
mentioned. Erwin von Bary saw at Ghat three Kel Fadeh men, " two of whom had
long, hanging tresses ; . . . one even had on each side of the head
little braided tufts which gave him an almost feminine air." 1
Occasionally side-locks are worn among the Amazigh of the Ma-
roccan Rif, while the Fulbe or Fulahs of the Chad-zone sometimes
braid the hair in a manner which strikingly recalls the Libyans
of the monuments (Fig. 46). Lastly, in the Anglo-Egyptian
Sudan the scalp-lock called gun'//, gambur, or guaga sometimes
recalls the Libyan tresses.
The reasons for the differences in hair-dressing among the
Libyans cannot be definitely stated. That in some degree they
served as tribal marks is clear from Herodotus ; but other ideas
may also have been associated with the wearing of side-locks. Among the Arabians
of the Negd the men " braid their long, manly side-locks . . . with long hair shed in
the midst, and hanging down at either side in braided horns," 2 simply for reasons of
masculine vanity; but the gurin? gambur, ox guaga of the Sudan, which is worn by many
male children and adults, is supposed to adorn that part of the head which is first pre-
sented during birth (it is commonly situated in the right or left occipito-parietal region),
the exact locality being carefully recorded by the midwife present at the time.
This lock is allowed to grow : —
1. During babyhood as the token of a vow made during pregnancy by the parents that should
a boy be granted to them they will not shave the Gambour until they have sacrificed to some saint,
Fiki, or the like.
2. In the child it is preserved as a convenient handle by which angels may lift him out of harm's
way in case of necessity.
3. In youth, it may be retained solely as an ornament.
4. In later life, again, it may be regrown as a token of a vow on the part of the wearer.
5. Some carry it as a safeguard against the heat of the sun.
6. While certain Fikis and holy men wear it as a badge of office. 4
I have quoted the above passage in externa, believing that in this case, as in so many
others, modern Sudanese practice may aid in explaining ancient Libyan custom. In con-
nection with the first reason cited above, it may be observed that anciently only men
appear with the side-lock, if one excepts the Abusir women, who wear male attire, and
whose hair is dressed in the same way as the men's, though not with a true side-lock.
Reason second is probably of Moslem growth. With three should be compared the
1 E. von Bary, Dernier Rapport d'un europeen sur POase ,le Ghat, p. 157 ; cf. also p. 166.
'- , C. M. Doughty, Wanderings in Arabia, vol. i p. 89; cf. vol. i. p. 185, Zcyd's " Ishmaelite side-locks flying back-
wards in the wind " as he rode. 3 This word ; s pro b ably thc Arabic ^, " horn."
* R. G. Anderson, Medical Practices and Superstitions of Kordofan, in Wellcome Research Laboratories, Third Report,
p. 3ii- '
PLATE VII.
SUPPLIANT LIBYANS. DYNASTY V.
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
r 37
present practice of the Negd Arabs noticed by Doughty, and also the Egyptian " lock of
youth" (Fig. 47). This lock is seen in Egyptian sculpture as a mark of infancy, child-
hood, or youth, and is therefore often given to Her-pu-krat (Har-
pocrates), who is most frequently represented as a child ; or to
Honsu, a lunar god who at Thebes was also worshipped under the
form of a child. Similarly, the lock of youth is seen in Egyptian
representations of young princes, etc. 1 It may be that since the
association of this side-lock with the idea of youthfulness existed in
ancient Egypt, and in some cases prevails to-day with regard to the
gambur in the Sudan, that a similar association obtained in Eastern
Libya.
The fourth and fifth reasons given for the wearing; of the
Fig. 47.
gambur throw no light on the Libyan practice. The side-lock of
the ancient Berbers seems to have been regularly worn," and so could not have been
" renewed," and it could never have been any protection against the sun. The sixth
reason, however, seems to have a Libyan parallel ; for as only chiefs are found wearing
the double side-lock (PI. I. Fig. 9), it is fairly certain that that form of the tress was
worn as a " badge of office."
The Libyans of the Egyptian monuments often appear bearded, in which case the
beards are slight and neatly trimmed, recalling the statement of Strabo cited above (Pis.
I., II., III., etc.). The words
Right
Shoulder
. . . iqualentia barba
Ora viris,* .
which Silius Italicus uses with regard to the
Macae are here in contradiction to the geographer
and to the monumental evidence. Slight mous-
bternum tac h es wer e also worn (cf. Frontis. ; PI. II. 3 ;
to Navel _,, TTT . . r j 1 l t-
PI. III., etc.), as is testified by the Egyptian repre-
Rig"Kt side
sentations.
i
Lower
Abdomen.
Fig. 4.8.
The best early evidence of Libyan tattooing is
that afforded by one of the paintings at Tell el-
Amarna (Fig. 48), by the XlXth Dynasty represen-
tations of Libyan chieftains in the tomb of Seti I.
(PI. III.), and by the glazed tiles of Medinet
Habu {Frontis.). The Tell el-Amarna captive is a chief, as is shown by his wearing
1 On the Egyptian and non-Egyptian forms of these tresses cf. W M. Muller, Asien und Europa, p. 29S
- According to Lucian (Navigium) all Egyptian youths of good birth wore the thick tress until they had reached man-
hood — a practice which he contrasts with earl}' Attic custom.
■■■ Occasional Egyptian representations of Westerners //^wearing any form of side-lock exist from the time of the
Gebeleyn relief to the New Empire. In these cases, however, the people represented . U- .
period, on account of the indifference of the artist.
4 Silius Italicus iii. 275-6.
i38
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
<s> ■
two feathers. On his right shoulder is a simple design — a double wavy or serrated line
and four dots. On his breast and abdomen are six lozenges in a vertical row, below
which, and also vertically placed in a serrated line, are then four more lozenges. This
tattooing is a little different in character from that of the other Libyans whose orna-
mentation is described below. Upon examination of the portraits ol the Temehu
chieftains shown in the tomb of Seti I. (PL III.) it will be seen that all four of the
Libyan leaders are ornamented with marks of a dark colour on the legs and arms. All
have in common an elongated, lozenge-like device above the instep of each loot, the
points of each "lozenge" being the ankle-bones. In other respects there is a general
resemblance in the style of their tattooing.
In another painting (Fig. 49) a Libyan (Rebu) chief is shown, followed by a sword-
bearer, an archer, and a tribesman who bears no arms, and
who is, except for a single plume and the pcmstasc/ie, unclad.
It is important to note that in this instance only the chiel
himself, whose decorations are very similar to those ol the
Temehu of the tomb of Seti I., is tattooed.
The three coloured faience tiles from Medinet Habu
(Frontis.) show two bearded Libyan captives who by their
rich apparel are clearly chiefs, although, owing to the
position they are designed to fill, the artist has had to omit
the double plume in order to preserve the isocephaly of the
figures in the frieze where they originally belonged. Both chieftains are tattooed, but
the only marks on the third figure, a woman, are three horizontal strokes at the navel,
here plainly intended to represent the abdominal creases found in many mature women.
In adducing these tiles as evidence for tattooing, one must add that not only the marks
upon the woman but others seen on the two men are not tattooing at all. Thus in a
[Frontis.) the chief's collar and sandal-ties are represented in the same dark-brown pigment
that serves to show his tattooing ; the three marks across his right wrist represent a
bracelet. In b {Frontis.) are seen a triple collar, two armillae (left biceps), and a bracelet
(left wrist). The other marks are designs tattooed 1 upon the chiefs' bodies.
In regard to these representations, it is first worthy of remark that only the chiels
are tattooed ; the followers of the Libyan leader in Fig. 49, and the woman of
Medinet Habu, are without ornaments of this sort. This suggests (ci) that tattooing was
in use among the chiefs and not among the tribesmen ; and (/?) that it was employed by
the men, and not by the women, of the leaders' families. If this was really the state ol
affairs it stands in sharp contradistinction to modern practice, as seen, lor example, among
the Kabyles and certain tribes of Marocco. The men of the former tattoo only for pro-
phylactic reasons ; the better sort among them not at all. 2 Among the latter the women
Fig. 49.
Or painted. The marks are throughout spoken of as " tattooing" for the reasons given below.
2 H. Weisgerber, La Blancs d' Afrique, p. 68.
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION
139
habitually practise tattooing, 1 and elsewhere in North Africa tattooing is practised by
Berber peoples, and without regard to rank or sex. 2 A parallel to what appears to have
been the early Libyan custom is, however, mentioned by Herodotus, who says that
among certain Thracian tribes tattooing was esteemed as a mark of noble birth, and that
a lack of it was a sign of inferior origin. 3
The units of design employed in ancient Libyan tattooing are so simple that it is
dangerous to try, as has been done,' to relate them to extra-African origins. In some
cases it is even doubtful whether they may not be due merely to the imagination of the
Egyptian artist, and only one or two elements can truly be said to be highly specialized.
One of these is the rectangular symbol which has been identified" with that of the Saitic
goddess Neith, and its occurrence merits careful consideration, both because it has been
adduced as evidence in connection with Libyan religion, and further because of the light
it throws on the reasons for tattoo-
ing among the Libvans. It is seen
on one of the chiefs in the form
shown in Fig. 50, a ; on three in
the form b (once without the
upper antennae-like projections) ;
and once as given in c. The allied
Fig. 50.
forms c/, e, and / also occur.
There can be no doubt that this highly specialized emblem is a truly Libyan one,
despite the ingenious conjecture of Lefebure that the mark is a brand put upon
captives who were to be given as servants to the goddess of Sais. For the Egyptian
text b Lefebure has adduced to support his argument relates only to captives as being
branded with the name of a king, and it is hardly credible, even supposing that they
were sometimes branded with the name of a deity, 7 that among all the foreign princes
represented none should display the name of Anion, the chief divinity of the Egyptians
at the time of the Libyan invasions of Seti I., Merneptah, and Rameses III. Further-
more, it would, in this case, be surprising that the symbol of a Delta goddess, and no
other, should occur on monuments all coming from near Thebes, the chief seat of
Anion, and only on Libyan, to the exclusion of Asiatic, captives.
The fact that there is no proof that the tattoo-marks here discussed were brands
applied to captive servants of Neith does not, however, preclude the possibility that the
symbol seen on the Libyan prisoners is that of the goddess. The archaic form ot the
1 Ibid. p. 172. " H. Bazin, Etudes stir le tatouagc dam le regeuee de Tunis.
3 Herodotus v. 6 ; cf., for Scvthic tattooing, Clearchus of Soli, Frag. 8 in FUG.
4 L. Bertholon, Origins niolithiques et myceniennes des tatouages des indigenes du nord de /' Afrique.
1 First by H. Brugsch, Religion und Mythologie der a/ten jgypter, p. 340 sqq.
In the Papyrus Harris, BAR iv. § 405, the King says " I have given to them [se. the captives] captains of archers, and
chief men of the tribes, branded and made into slaves, impressed with my name ; their wives and their children were made
likewise." In notcg, ad he. cit., Breasted shows that these captives given to Anion probably served in part as temple neatherds.
7 Refugees at some sacred asylums in Arabia became lepoSovXoi and were tattooed with sacred marks. W. R. Smith,
Religion of the Semites, p. 148, note.
140
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
in its archaic (Fig
hieroglyph, 1 as seen in Fig. 51, a, is practically identical with the tattoo-mark shown in
Fig. 50, a ; while Fig. 50, e, is like it, save for the lack of the " antennae " at the ends
of the rectangle. To the later form of the hieroglyph, Fig. 51, b
(which came eventually to be written as in c), the tattoo-marks in Fig.
50, b and c, correspond exactly. Fig. 50,/ lacks the "antennae."
The marks, Fig. 50, d, e, f\ may be variants, either accidental or
significant, of the hieroglyph I, but there can be no reasonable doubt
that the marks in Fig. 50, a, b, and c, are the symbol | itself, both
51, a) and New Empire (Fig. 51, b, c) forms. These identities
throw light on the reason of the practice of tattooing among the Libyans. It has been
shown that the evidence at present available points to the fact that Libyan tattooing
was anciently a prerogative of (male) chieftains, and the common employment of this
symbol indicates furthermore that it may have served to show that the wearers were
in some special manner under the protection of, or affiliated to, the Libyan-Egyptian
goddess.
The other units of design were very simple ; they are collected in Fig. 52, and
may be characterized as typically neolithic.
Of the methods of tattooing, no evidence is pre-
served ; indeed, what has for convenience been so termed
up to this point may have been mere painting. The
Gyzantes painted themselves with red all over their
bodies ; J the Maxyes smeared themselves liberally with
red paint. :) The character of the Libyan designs, how-
ever, and the practice in ancient Egypt and in modern North Africa of subcutaneous
tattooing, encourage the belief that the skin decorations recorded on the monuments were
tattooing in the proper sense.
It appears from the Egyptian records that while circumcision was practised by the
Sherden and other allies of the Libyans, they were not themselves given to this
mutilation. 4 This is in a way confirmed at a later period by the statements of
Herodotus. He attributes the origin of the practice to the Egyptians, 5 of whom he
remarks that they preferred to be cleanly rather than unmutilated.' 1 He does not
include the Libyans among those peoples whom he enumerates as observing circum-
cision, though he correctly says that it was an Egyptian custom, and one which was
undoubtedly of very ancient date in Aethiopia. 7 That he is not here, as happens
with other Greek writers and once or twice with himself, confusing the Aethiopians
The origin of the sign is obscure.
Fig. 52.
1 D. Mallet, Le Culte de Neit a Sals,
'' Ibid. iv. 191.
'■' Herodotus n. 36.
.179. 1 he origin of the sign is obscure. - Herodotus iv. 194.
4 BAR iii. § 587 and note h, ad he. at., § 588, iv. § 53, ct alibi.
Ibid. ii. 37. ~> Ibid. ii. 104.
DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION 141
with the Libyans, is clear not only from the XlXth and XXth Dynasty testimony, but
also from that of the Piankhi stela. The Aethiopian Piankhi, having subdued the Delta
dynasts, denied them entrance to his presence because they were eaters of an Aethiopian
taboo animal — the fish — and, apparently, because they were uncircumcised. 1 Only
Namlot was permitted to enter the palace of Piankhi, a favour which was granted him
because of his position at the head of the Dynasts ; and perhaps because, in conformity
with Egyptian usage, he had been " made circumcised."
1 BAR iv. § 88z, note d.
CHAPTER VII
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
The Use of Metals. — It has been tacitly assumed by many writers that the ancient
Libyans of the time of the invasions were in a fairly advanced state of culture because
they had arms and utensils of metal. This is a question which needs careful examina-
tion, since it has a profound bearing on Libyan civilization, and because it is of deep
historical significance.
No doubt to some extent the Eastern Libyans were
users of metals. In the lists of property lost to the
victorious Egyptians by the emir Meryey, mention is
made of " his silver, his gold, and his vessels of bronze " ; 1
and the Egyptians took also as booty over nine thousand
" copper swords of the Meshwesh," 2 " silver drinking
vessels," 3 and " knives." 4 In the list of Libyan spoil
taken by Rameses III. are itemized : —
Swords of five cubits . . . 115 ( + x)
Swords of three cubits . . . 124. 5
These notices receive confirmation from an Egyptian
representation of the metal vases of the Libyans (Fig. 53), 6
and from the classical notices of Libyan swords. 7
It would, however, be wrong to infer from this
evidence that the Eastern Libyans were as a whole in a
"full metal age." They were, in fact, metal-users only by accident, for their useful
metals anciently, as to-day, came to them from without. 8 The metal vases of the princes
betray by their forms their foreign origin, and the long swords of the soldiery were
1 BAR iii. § 584. 2 BAR Hi. § 589. s BAR, loc. cit.
4 BAR, loc. cit. and note b. These " knives " have the determinative for copper.
5 BAR iv. § III. 6 W. M. Miiller, op. cit. vol. ii. p. 123 sqq.
7 Hellanicus, Frag. 93 in FHG ; Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 137 in FHG.
8 I say useful metals, since gold they may have found within or near their territories, e.g. as in the Isle of Cyraunis, so
reputed for its mineral-pitch (Herodotus iv. 195).
142
Fig. 53.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 143
those known in Southern Europe, and employed by the Sherden allies of the North
Africans. 1 Between Tunisia and Egypt the scarcity of native metal would in itself
be sufficient ground for doubting whether the Eastern Libyans were ever acquainted
with the art of working metals. Apart from the haematitic iron in Marmarica, 2 and
traces of copper in the Gebel el-Akabab, 3 no workable metals are found within Eastern
Libya. On the western boundary of that area are some deposits of iron, 4 while copper
is found in small quantities on the eastern slopes of Atlas. 5 There is no indication
that any of these sources was known before Roman times, and the modern inhabitants
of the country depend for their metals wholly on the outside world.
An examination of the classical evidence relating to Libyan weapons is especially
significant on this head. A warlike people, if amply supplied with copper, bronze, or
iron, would certainly have been provided with weapons of metal. Yet this does not
seem to have been the case in Greek and Roman times. It is true that, both citing the
same source or one the other, Hellanicus and Nicolaus of Damascus speak of Libyan
swords, 6 but they are speaking rather of the Punicized Libyans of the west than of the
Eastern Libyans proper, of whom Diodorus Siculus, here drawing on a source better
than some he uses, remarks that they were armed each with three javelins and a bag of
stones, and that they were ignorant of swords, helms, or other arms. 7 The Auseans,
it is true, in a religious festival dressed one of the performers in a " Corinthian helmet
and a full suit of Greek armour " 8 ; not only were these importations, however, but
Herodotus declares his ignorance " what arms they used . . . before the Greeks came
to their country." 9 It is noteworthy that the arms employed by the Auseans in their
religious sham-fights were stones and clubs. 10 For the sake of their clothes and arms
the Libyans cut off the stragglers from the Persian army of Aryandes, when it was in
retreat from Cyrenaica ; n while the Libyan contingent in the army of Xerxes was armed
with javelins the tips of which had been hardened by fire. 12 The barbed spear, cateia,
mentioned as a Libyan weapon by Silius Italicus, 13 was not necessarily headed with metal ;
the same poet, speaking of the Baniurae, says that, lacking iron, they are- —
Content! parca durasse hastilia flamma. u
The arms of the Libyans of early Byzantine times, as mentioned by Corippus, were
1 W. M. Miiller, op. cit. vol. ii. p. 127, n. 2.
2 Nodules of haematite containing a high percentage of iron, and showing a lustrous silvery fracture, are found in the
Libyan desert near Mongar Lebuk. Yuzbashi Nimr 'Ali, O.C., H.H. Coast Guards, at Dabbah, showed me in 1910 a
specimen he had collected.
3 A specimen of the ore was brought by an Arab to Binbashi L. V. Royle, O.C., H.H. Coast Guards, Marsah Matru,
where I saw it in 1910.
4 H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 142. Duveyrier pertinently asks comment l'exploiterait-on sans combustible?
6 Tertullian, Apologia xii. ; Victor Vitensis, Historia persecutions, v. 19; S. Cyprianus, Epist. 80; cf. Strabo
xvii. p. 830.
6 Hellanicus, loc. cit. The Numidian tribesman has naught save . . . kvXiko. ko.1 pdxaipav kcu vSplav . . .
Nicolaus of Damascus loc. cit. I,ap8o\if3v€s ovSlv KeKTTjvrcu o-Kevos e£u kvXikos ko.1 /xaxatpas.
7 Diodorus Siculus iii. 69. 4. To make Diodorus's list complete it only is necessary to add only bows.
8 Herodotus iv. 180. 9 Ibid. loc. cit. 10 Ibid. loc. cit. u Ibid. iv. 203. 1Z Ibid. vii. 71.
13 Silius Italicus iii. 277. u Ibid. iii. 303 sq. The Baniurae were a Gaetulian tribe of the west, Pliny v. 2.
H4 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
in some — perhaps in many — cases of metal ; 1 but it should be borne in mind that the
natives described in the Johannis were mainly of the west, and a juster idea of the arms
of the Eastern Libyans can be drawn from Procopius. 2 It may be observed that not
only is a scarcity of metal apparent from the evidence on arms, but also the vases of gold,
silver, or bronze, mentioned in the Egyptian records, do not appear in classical writers,
who mention only cups and jars of pottery, 3 or of wood or bark. 4 Whereas, furthermore,
the women of the Egyptianized Adyrmachidae had anklets of bronze, 5 their sisters among
the Auseans, who were remote from Egypt, had to be content with rings of leather. 6
Metal, then, was a rarity. The great chieftains had stores of it, the fighting men in
contact with Carthage or Egypt succeeded in procuring it. The majority of tribesmen
had not enough of it to head their weapons, or to make themselves swords. Descriptions in
Silius Italicus of bejewelled and well-armed Libyan chiefs are to be taken as mainly poetic,
and as only partially justified by the fact that the leaders of the allies of Carthage would
naturally have Carthaginian weapons. It is indeed only as allies of metal-users like the
Carthaginians or the Sherden that the Eastern Libyans appear in history as a people
advanced beyond a neolithic stage of culture. This point is significant. The island of
Sardinia, which was at least partly under the dominion of the Sherden, is rich in metals.
The long swords of the Libyan tribesmen were, as has been said, South European in
type, and are seen on the Egyptian monuments of the New Empire as the characteristic
weapons of the Sherden and Shekelesh mercenaries in the Egyptian service. From this
it seems safe to infer that the Sherden sea-rovers associated with the Libyans in their
enterprises against Egypt armed their allies. This is of no small significance as indicative
of the strength of the bonds between the Northerners and the Africans, and of the
character of the great invasions.
Arms and Warfare. — What has been said with regard to the use of metals may serve
as an introduction to the question of Libyan arms and warfare.
Of offensive weapons the Eastern Libyans do not appear to have despised the
humblest, for it was not only in the Ausean sham-fights that they made use of sticks and
stones. The latter, as has been remarked, they carried in bags, and threw with great
skill, 7 either by hand or from slings. 8 The former were either straight (Fig. 54, a) or
curved slightly near the end (Fig. 54, b, c), like a modern camel-stick. If meant for
throwing, they were crooked like some of the modern Sudanese turumbash (Fig. 54, c).
These very primitive weapons were widely employed by the Eastern Libyans, but
their weapons par excellence were the bow and arrow, and the short javelin. It is the
1 Corippus, Johannis, ii. 115 {mucrone potens), 126 (gladiosque minaces), 133 (binaque praevalido . . . hastilia ferrd), 151
(. . . lancea duplex \ iuniperum ferro validam suffigit acuta), 155 [mucro fulmincus), etc.
2 Procopius, De bello Vandalico ii. 11.
3 Hellanicus, he. cit. Nicolaus Damascus,/^, cit. 4 Mela i. 8. 5 Herodotus iv. 168.
6 Ibid. iv. 176. " Diodorus Siculus iii. 49. 5. 8 For a Libyan slinger see PI. V. 2.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
i45
bow with which the Libyans are equipped in the great battle scenes of the XlXth and
XXth Dynasties. In the Merneptah records Meryey is said to have fallen upon the
Temehu with his bowmen ; l and later, in his own flight, to have left behind him his
bow, arrows, and quiver.- In the booty taken by Merneptah were more than two
thousand bows ; s while bows and quivers, the latter to the number of 2310, were
captured by Rameses III. 4 The bows used by the Libyans seem sometimes to have
a dl
L>
t<U£
^
a
Fig.
54-
Fig. 55.
been so small as to suggest that they were, as was sometimes the case in Egypt, 5 used
for poisoned arrows. As far as can be judged, the shape of the bows (Fig. 55) is rather
that of those employed by the Asiatics of the monuments than of those used by the
Egyptians or in use in modern Africa. 6 The typical Libyan bow resembled in shape a
very obtuse V, having an angle of about 140°. The bows of the chiefs are sometimes
shown as having reflexed horns, as in Fig. 55, a. In one case (Fig. 55, c), the bow itself
is so small that it must be regarded as a model," or as having for conventional reasons
been made small by the artist.
The forms of the heads of the Libyan arrows were varied. The large number of
arrow-heads of flint, carnelian, and similar stones, found in the Sahara, the Egyptian
oases, and the Fayum, makes it probable that these were the points generally employed ;
while the highly specialized types which these neoliths exhibit, and the fact that
even in Egypt some forms of them were in use down into protodynastic times,
encourage the belief that they were employed by the less advanced Libyans
during the full historic period. A parallel survival, may be cited in the case of
the Aethiopians, who, even when serving in the army of Xerxes in the fifth century
B.C., had arrows headed "not with iron, but with a piece or stone, sharpened FlG ' 56,
to a point, of the kind used in engraving seals." s A typical collection of Fayum points
1 BAR iii. g 5 79 ; cf. iii. § 609, " the archers threw down their bows."
;; BAR iii. ij 601 ; cf. the unknown item numbering 120,214, mentioned by BAR iii. § 589.
3AR iii. § 584-
5 G. A. Reisner, Work of the Expedition of the University of California at Naga ed-Der, in the Annates, vol. v.
pi. vii., fig. 1.
6 For which, R. Karutz, Die afrikanischen Bogen Pfeile und Kocher im Liibecker Museum, etc.
7 Cf., however, the " dancing-bows " of the Nuers of the Bahr ez-Zerraf. These are small mimic bows of purely
ceremonial significance. Cf. O. Bates, Sudanese Notes, in CSJ, vol. vi. No. 69. 8 Herodotus vii. 69.
U
i 4 6 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
is shown in PL VIII. 1-3 1 inclusive; the arrow-head represented in Fig. 561s one
recently found near Gerbah (Slwah Oasis), and sent to me by my friend Major L. V.
Royle. It may be stated with certainty that the Fayum flints are Libyan and not Nilotic,
from (a) the wide geographical range of many of the types, 1 and (i>) the preponderance
of them in habitable places not in the Nile Valley.
The javelins which, at least after the introduction of the horse, were weapons so
characteristically Libyan, seem not to have been common at the time of the invasions.
In the list of booty taken by Rameses III., only ninety-two " spears " are listed among
the weapons, 2 but by classical times darts, lances, and spears were universally employed
throughout North Africa. 3 These weapons were headed much as were the Libyan
arrows. In PI. VIII. 32-40 inclusive are various examples of spear and lance points
from the Fayum, the broad, gashing type there shown (32) being especially note-
worthy. 4 That spears were sometimes
il*^ ^^ pointed merely by induration of the
^■Sf* 4lP ^A Hfc sharpened end in the fire has been men-
a D • wf tioned alreadv. 5
FlG 57 The classical writers, in using such
terms as iacu/a, 6 tela, 1 spicula* etc., when
speaking of the Libyan javelins, clearly indicate that they were
mainly weapons for hurling rather than for stabbing or thrusting.
That the javelins were usually carried in pairs appears from Corippus 9 Fig
(cf. Fig. 57, b), although three was not an unusual number (cf. Fig.
58) ; and that they may sometimes have been delivered by the aid of a throwing-thong
{amentum) may be implied by such phrases as —
. . . spicules supplex
lam torquet Garamas . . . w
and
. . . tremulum quern torsit missile Ma%ax u
in the Latin writers. That the barbed spear, known to the Romans as the cateia, was
used among the Libyans is to be inferred from a line of Silius Italicus. 12
Besides the weapons mentioned, the Libyans used, to a limited extent and at those
times when they were allied to a people more advanced than themselves, the sword.
The Egyptians took from the Meshwesh 91 11 copper swords, 1 " and the swords ol five
1 Cf. E.-F. Gautier, Sahara algerien, p. 121 sqq. pi. xix. photo. 37 ; H. Vischer, Across the Sahara, Appendix B.
- BAR iv. § in.
3 Herodotus vii. 71 ; Strabo xvii. p. 828 ; Caesar, De bcllo Afrieano xiv. ; Lucan iv. 662 ; Silius Italicus ii. 89, iii.
277, iii. 303 ; Diodorus Siculus iii. 49. 4 ; Claudian, Laus Stilichonis i. 249 ; Procopius, De bcllo Vandalico ii. 11.
1 (?) The venabula of Corippus ii. 11.
6 The spear of the Temehu mercenary shown in I. Rosellini, Monumenti, etc., vol. ii. pi. 117, 5, appears to be merely
fire-hardened. 6 Corippus, Johannis iv. 5 13, 551, v. 1 3 6. 7 Ibid. ii. 1 14. 8 Claudian, Laus Stilichonis, i. 345.
9 Corippus, Johannis ii. 133, bina hastiha ; Procopius, hoc. clt. Cf. Fig. 57, b.
111 Claudian, hoc. cit. n Lucan iv. 662.
one of the Macae —
. panda rnaiuis est armata catcia. vs BAR iii. § 589.
PLATE VIII.
LIBYAN NEOLITHS.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
H7
an
d of three cubits taken by Rameses III. have been mentioned. 1 These powerful
weapons were, as has been said, of foreign origin ; an example is shown in Fig. 49. 2
A sword of different type is mentioned by Silius as having been employed by the
Adyrmachidae. The Roman poet describes it asfa/catus, 3 a term which strongly suggests
the Egyptian sickle-shaped weapon known as the * D X hepes (PL IV. and Fig. 88).
If the Adyrmachidae really had a sword of this type, it would be of much archaeological
interest, for the hepes occupied a curious ceremonial position in Egypt, was an attribute of
kings, and had its origin in remote — possibly in neolithic — times. 4 In the classical period
the Libyans in contact with the Mediterranean world were in some cases armed with the
short sabre, the machaera? while in Byzantine times short, small, straight swords, 6 or
long knives, were occasionally worn on the upper arm, 7 as with the modern Imushagh
and Sudanese. These small swords are to be distinguished from those mentioned in the
booty taken by Merneptah.* The knives captured by that Pharaoh were presumably
such daggers as those shown in the hands of the Libyans as early as in the Ne-user-re
reliefs, and as late as the New Empire (Fig. 59). These daggers are hardly distinguish-
able from Egyptian weapons, and are really Mediterranean. They had sheaths
(Fig. 59, d), and, as is clear from the type of hilt, were primarily for stabbing.
One more weapon deserves passing mention. A Libyan mercenary in one of the
Beni Hasan paintings (Fig. 1 1) carries an axe. 9 The form is the lunate shape so common
1 BAR iv. §111. Five cubits = 2.63 m. (!) ; three cubits = 1.59 m.
2 Is the modern Imushagh long sword a survival of these old weapons ? For an example see Aymard, Les Touareg,
frontis.
3 Silius Italicus iii. 278 sqq. —
. . . etfakattu ab arte
Ensis Adyrmachidis.
4 For an example of this curved sword see I. Rosellini, Monument!, etc., vol. iii. pi. 121, 8.
; ' Hellanicus, loc. cit, ; Nicolaus Damascenus, he. cit.
7 Corippus, Jobannis ii. 126 sqq-
Corippus, Johannis ii. 115, 126, 155.
. . . gladlosquc min aces
Non solito vinctos lateri, sed circulus ambit
Perstringens modicum, comp/exus brachia gyro
Vaginasque aptant nudis pendere lacerth ;
and ii. I 55 —
Mucro fulmineus laevo dependens ab armo.
8 BAR iii. § 589.
9 I. Rosellini, op. cit., vol. ii. pi. 117, 5, gives another example.
148 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
in Egypt, and it is probable that the axe-bearer was armed by those he served. It is,
however, to be remarked that Silius twice speaks of Libyans in the Carthaginian army
as armed with axes, although in this case the double bipennis, 1 and not the lunate
form, is specified.
A people in a low state of civilization is better supplied with offensive than with
defensive arms. This was well exemplified in the case of the North Africans of antiquity,
though it is not necessary to believe that any portion of the inhabitants of the continent
were quite so devoid of protection as Herodotus declares the # Gamphasantes to have
been. 2 Leather coats were the commonest defence ; even the riff-raff in the army of
Xerxes wore them. 3 Shields, moreover, were regularly used during the classical period.
The common forms were the large round buckler, slightly convex on the outer side,
known to the Romans as the clipeus ; 4 and the caetra 5 and the pelta? The last two
were sometimes slung at the side or between the shoulders of the wearer. 7 The small
round shields of the caetra type were especially favoured in Africa, as in Spain. 8 They
were light, and made of strips or thongs of leather. 9 Examples are seen in the Saharan
petroglyphs (e.g. Fig. $j) in a " Numidian " stela (Fig. 58), and in the Constantinople
sculptures (Fig. 13). The last-named instance is of exceptional interest, since the
artist has indicated the structure of the shields. The
Macae, according to Herodotus, used a shield which must
have been of the caetra class, made of ostrich-skin. 10
A shield roughly resembling the Boeotian type was
also known in North Africa ; Fig. 60 shows an example,
borne by a Libyan wearing a kilt and penistasche (?).
Another example, somewhat like the body-shield of the Crusaders,
is recorded on a petroglyph in Tibesti (Fig. 61). It is ornamented
with a cross, perhaps intended to represent colour, since the fact that the Libyans
painted their shields is known from Silius. 11
Helms and body-armour, though occasionally referred to by Roman writers when
1 Silius Italicus v. 287 sq. —
Stabat fulgentem portans in bella bipennem
Cyniphius ; . . .
and the "cruel axe " (saevamque bipennem) of the Princess Asbyte in ii. 189.
2 Herodotus iv. 174; followed by Mela i. 8 ; and by Martianus Capella, De nuptiis Philologiae, etc., vi. (p. 232),
Campasantes [sic] nudi et im belles externis numquam miscentur.
3 Herodotus vii. 71. These jackets probably represented the "armour" of Merneptah records, BAR iii. § 589.
4 Corippus, Johannis ii. 114, 126. The Greek oottis.
5 Silius Italicus iii. 278; Corippus, Johannis ii. 153. The name caetra, cetra, is Iberian, and this shield was
usually associated with Spain. Cf. Hesychius in verb. : i<a[rpa oir\a 'I^ijpiKix, and Servius ad Vergilii Aeneidem vii. 732.
6 Silius Italicus ii. 80. It may be because this light lunate shield was especially associated in classical art with the
Amazons that Silius attributes it here to the Libyan princess Asbyte.
7 Corippus, Johannis ii. 126, 153.
8 Servius, loc. cit., scutum loreum quo utuntur Afri et Hispani.
9 Isidorus Hispalensis, Origines viii. 12, scutum loreum sine ligno. Cf. Strabo xvii. p. 828, for shields of elephant-hide.
10 Herodotus iv. 175.
11 Silius Italicus iii. 278, versicolor . . . caetra, in describing an Adyrmachid.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 149
describing Libyan chiefs, 1 do not appear to have been in general use. Diodorus even
states explicitly that they were not employed. 2 The warriors of the Constantinople
sculptures referred to above wear what might be supposed to be helms, but these may
be merely caps, either of cloth or of leather, of the pileus type. 3
As regards equipment, it has already been remarked that the Eastern Libyans, as
early as the time of the invasions, made use of quivers. Mention has also been made of
the bags in which the slingers or stone-casters carried their ammunition. 4 An important
item in Libyan gear was the kerbah or water-skin without which it was impossible to
travel in the desert. Kerabah are first noticed in a, New Empire record, 5 and in classical
times were carried slung under the bellies of horses, 6 a practice which persists to-day.
The booty taken from the Libyans by Rameses III. included nearly one hundred
chariots. 7 According to Herodotus, the Greeks derived their knowledge of the quadriga
from Libya, 8 but this does not, even if correct, in the slightest degree affect the
probability that the Libyans themselves drew their knowledge of the chariot from
Egypt. By classical times, wheeled vehicles of some sort had become widely diffused
over North Africa. They were known to the Asbystae, 9 and to the Zaueces, whose wives
drove their husbands' chariots to battle. 10 Even the Garamantes n of the interior, and the
Pharusii and Nigretes of the far west 12 had cars for travelling or for battle ; and the
whole Libyan contingent serving with Xerxes was mounted in chariots, just as were
the Arabians upon camels — in both cases, that is, the troops served with their usual
equipment. It is not therefore strange to find such a phrase as —
At/Sues fnycoTtiji/ apfiaruiv kwunaTai ls
in Sophocles, nor to learn that Cyrene, evdpfiaro<; 71-0X1?, u was anciently a very celebrated
centre for chariotry, although by Roman times the use of chariots in war had declined.
It is not to be imagined that the Libyan chariot, of native make, was the smart
vehicle of wood and bronze known in Egypt, Asia, and Greece. Frequently the
" chariots " were probably no more than wains. Explicit notices of such exist, as in
Silius Italicus, who thus refers to the Gaetulians : —
Nulla domus ; plaustris habitant ; migrare per arva
Mos atque errantes circumvectare penates. 15
1 E.g. Silius Italicus i. 415 et alibi. Cf., however, the remarks of Pliny x. I, and Theophrastus, Hist. Plant, iv.
41, in regard to ostrich-plumes being worn by the Libyans in their helms. By the Egyptian monumental evidence
the use of feathers is confirmed, but that of helms is not.
2 Diodorus Siculus iii. 49. 4. 3 Cf. Procopius, De bello Vandal, i. 25.
4 Diodorus Siculus, loc. at. 5 BAR iii. §§ 609, 610.
6 Strabo xvii. p. 8z8. 7 BAR iv. § 1 1 1.
8 Herodotus iv. 189. The four-horse chariot is at least as early as the Homeric poems — Iliad viii. 185, Odyss.
xiii. 81 — and appeared in the Olympic contests in the seventh century, as is attested by Pausanias v. 8. 7.
9 Whom Herodotus, iv. 170, terms TedpLirirofiaTai jj.aXurra Aiftviav.
10 Herodotus iv. 193. u Ibid. iv. 183.
12 Strabo, loc. cit. The war-chariots are said by Strabo to have been armed with scythes.
13 Sophocles, Electra, 702. w Pindar, Pyth. iv. 7.
15 Silius Italicus iii. 299, 300 ; cf. Caesar, De bello Africano lxxv. ; Pliny v. 3.
IS© THE EASTERN LIBYANS
It is cars of this sort, robusta plaustra, and not chariots, which are seen on the rock-
glyphs of Northern Tibesti ; pictures, if one may judge, of true neolithic wains.
Similar carts are to be seen to-day in Kordofan. They are drawn by bullocks, and are
made without metal, of tough woods well pegged together and lashed with thongs of
green hide. They bear no resemblance to the Libyan war-chariots which are portrayed,
only in one doubtful instance, on an Egyptian monument ; the type of car there
represented is indistinguishable from the Egyptian vehicle, or at least was so rendered
by the Egyptian artist. 1
What has been said of the horses of Eastern Libya may be recalled here in
connection with the question of warfare. The North African horses were little more
than ponies, but tough and wiry. 2 They first appear in history at the time of the
invasions. 3 They were so well trained that they often followed their masters, when the
latter went on foot, like dogs ; 4 they were ridden without saddles, and often without
bridles, being guided by the touch of a light switch. 5 In some few cases bridles of
rushes were employed, 6 but they are not heard of among the Eastern Libyans. The one
trapping which seems to have been in general use was a neck-stall of palm-fibre or
plaited bark, the -wepiTpaxn^a %v\iva y from which depended a leading -rein. 7 A rude
representation of this is seen in the " Numidian " stela, Fig. 58.
In their manner of fighting, the Libyans of the Egyptian period followed a system
of tactics very different from that which they practised when, at a later date, they had
become a nation of horsemen. The Meshwesh, for example, having overpowered their
eastern neighbours, the Tehenu, forced the latter to join them in their invasion -of
Egypt. Meryey, the Meshwesh leader, contracted alliances with numbers of Sherden,
Sheklesh, Ekwesh, Luka, and Teresh, " taking the best of every warrior and man of
war in his country." 8 Thereafter the army of invasion marched upon Egypt, cutting
off the detached Egyptian outposts as it neared the Nile Valley. 9 Eventually the army
neared the scene of battle, approaching the forces of Merneptah. Before dawn on the
day preceding that of the battle, the great chief in person 10 went among the leather
tents 11 of his camp, marshalling his men. 12 The next day, the Libyan vanguard 13 was
face to face with the Egyptian army, and the battle began. For six hours it raged, the
Egyptian archery loosing flight after flight of arrows into the undisciplined but hardy
1 W. M. Milller, Egyptological Researches, vol. ii. p. 121.
2 Strabo, he. cit. s BAR iii. § 589, iv. § m. * Strabo, he. eit.
5 Ibid. he. eit. ; Lucan iv. 663 sq. —
Et gens quae nudo residens Massylia dorso
Ora levi flectit frenorum nescia virga.
This passage was, it may be safely assumed, equally applicable for the ruder east. Cf. ibid. iv. 658 sq.
. . . semperque paratus
Inculto Gaetulus equo.
6 Silius Italicus i. 215 sq. ; Caesar, De belh Jfricano, lxi. ; Claudian, Niks, 20 ; Laus Stilichonis, i. 249.
7 Strabo, loc. cit.
s BAR iii. §579. 9 BAR iii. § 580. 10 BAR iii. § 583.
11 BAR ">• § 589- 12 BAR iii. § 583. is BAR iii. § 609. "Their marchers forward."
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 151
ranks of the Libyans. 1 Finally the invaders broke and fled, casting aside their bows
and water-skins, 2 and leaving over 9000 slain on the field, and as many more taken
captive. 3
Far different from battles and campaigns of this sort, which evince so much
military stability — however barbaric — are those of the Libyans of the classical period.
In Greek and Roman times, the African was like the Parthian, a light horseman ; swift
to attack, yet swifter to retreat, unapproachable by infantry. The native cavalry with
which Caesar was forced to engage seldom chose to come to close quarters with an
enemy on level ground ; they preferred to lie in ambush with their horses among the
wadys, and then suddenly to fall upon their foes. 4 Sometimes, for the sake of greater
stability, these horsemen went into action in company with light-armed foot. 5 The
mounted African was, as Ammianus said from personal experience, an enemy flanking
and sudden, and trusting to secret wiles rather than to regular fighting. 6 Yet these
methods of fighting, though not unknown to the Eastern Libyans, were rather those of
the Numidians and Mauri of the west. 7 Something of the old stability existed in
Tripolitana to a late period, where the natives fought from behind their barrack'd
camels, 8 as cavalry use their carbines from behind their horses at the present day.
The existence in parts of Eastern Libya of well-built strongholds leads to the
supposition that such tribes as the Auschisae and the Nasamones, within whose territories
the occurrence of these forts has been noted, knew how to maintain themselves behind
defences. No notices of such actions, however, exist, unless in the case of an Egyptian
representation of a fortress which is being stormed by Rameses II. The fortress in
question is pictured in the conventional Egyptian manner, and is called Satuna —
supposedly a Syrian town. The garrison, curiously enough, is of mixed Asiatics and
Libyans — a point well worthy of notice, even if it be admitted that the scene of the
action lay not in Libya but in Syria. 9
In late times, fighting from within a square of barrack'd camels was a favourite
mode of sustaining attacks. The men were stationed along the lines, the women and
children were placed in the middle of the square. 10 The camels were in some cases
partially protected by the men's shields. 11
In personal courage the ancient Berbers were the equals of their descendants. Like
1 BAR iii. § 584. 2 BAR iii. § 609.
3 BAR iii. § 588 ad fin., and note a, ad loc. cit.
4 Caesar, De bello Africano, vii. ; cf. Diodorus Siculus iii. 49. 3. 5 Ibid. xiv. 69.
6 Ammianus Marcellinus, Hist. xxix. 5, hostis discursator et repentinus, insidiisque potius clandestinis quam praeliorum
stabilitate confidens.
7 Cf. Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 134 in FHG, where the proneness of the Massyli to night attacks is emphatically
stated.
8 Procopius, De bello Vandalico, i. 8, ii. II.
9 W. M. Mtiller, op. cit. p. 175 sqq., and fig. 62. In discussing this fortress, Milller commits two slight errors : he
states that the Libyans could not have built such a fortress as Satuna, a statement which the Ghemines fortress and other
remains disprove ; and he says that pine-forests, which appear in the Satuna representation, are not known in North Africa,
whereas they exist both in Cyrenaica and in the Gebel el-'Akabah.
10 Procopius, De bello Vandalico, ii. 11. n Ibid. i. 8.
J 52
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
most barbarians they were subject to panics, as when a handful of Caesar's Gallic horse
turned back, by a sudden sally, 2000 native cavalry. 1 Yet under favourable conditions,
the North Africans were bold and determined enemies. The revolts of Inarus and of
Tacfarinas were in themselves resolute and courageous undertakings, although they
failed of their design, and readers of Livy will recall his statement that it was the
swords of the Libyan mercenaries that carried the day against Rome at Cannae. 2
Though as a rule poorly and variously armed, the Eastern Libyans, when wholly
independent, as in the days of the New Empire, were always numerous and brave
enough to be a constant menace to Egypt if they had to a greater degree been possessed
of the power of concerted action. In classical times their bravery had remained with
them, and they had, through the introduction and dissemination of the horse and the
camel, evolved a rude system of tactics which consisted in harassing and wearing out
their enemy. Their power of coalescence had not, however, much developed, and their
arms, unlike those of other Mediterranean peoples, had not improved. Before the
well-disciplined cavalry of Rome, or before the Arabs, close-knit in the initial fervour of
Islam, they could not stand. In short, their military history, vaguely as it is known,
displays a common characteristic of barbarism — personal bravery, rendered ineffectual
through want of subordination, coherence, and stability.
Household Gear. — The accoutrements of the Eastern Libyans can have varied so
little from those employed by their descendants that it will be pertinent first to give a
list of the usual domestic possessions of a modern family of Imushagh, and then one
of such household gear as the ancient tribesman is known to have possessed. The
following objects are to be found among the modern Berber nomads of the North East : —
Grass mats.
Grass mats for screens.
Woollen rugs, parti-coloured (very rare).
Tanned ox-hides (to eat off of).
Mattress, pillows, covers, beds (all hardly
known, except in the families of chiefs.
The usual "bed" is the adeben, or
hollow scooped in the sand).
Leather cushions.
Grass-work baskets.
Leather bags.
Pack-saddles for asses.
Skins for liquids (kerabaK).
Ropes and leather buckets for drawing water.
Gourd noggins.
Pottery jars.
Wooden jars for butter.
Wooden cups for drinking.
Wooden trenchers.
Wooden spoons.
Wooden mortars (with stone pestles).
It is necessary to add, to make the list complete, only a few odds and ends such as
firestones, awls, needles, etc. 3
The ancient household gear of which evidence exists may be itemized thus : —
1 Caesar, op. at. vi. 2 Livy, xxii. 47, 48.
3 For this list, H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 404 sqq.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 153
Chairs. Among the booty taken from Meryey was a " throne " ; l and a camp-chair is shown
in the Ghadames relief, Fig. 33. It is to be supposed that furniture of this sort was even more
rare anciently than to-day. The same is true of the next item.
Footstool (shown in Ghadames relief).
Metal vases, of gold, silver, or bronze, have been already noticed as despoiled from the Libyan
princes. An Egyptian representation of such vases is here reproduced, Fig. 53. By their forms
these vases are clearly of Syrian origin, as a comparison with the Asian types on the monuments
will show. They are interesting chiefly as testifying to the wealth of the great emirs, and to their
relations with Asiatics. 2
Vessels of pottery may have been intended in the Egyptian lists, where are mentioned
" fpw-r-vessels," " rhd - t-vessels," and "various vessels," 3 but the doubt as to the meaning of the
first two names leaves the question unsettled. It is, however, certain that the Eastern Libyans
had pottery cups and water-jars — the cylices and hydrias mentioned by Nicolaus of Damascus and
Hellanicus in the fragments cited earlier in this chapter. Only in the case of the Garamantes is
it probable that pottery was very scarce.
Vessels of Ostrich-shell., however, these people had, making " cups of them ; for as there was
nothing but sand as material they had no pottery." 4
Vessels of Wood or Bark are mentioned explicitly by Mela, who says of the Libyans vasa ligno
cortice fingunt. 5
Cords would have been made of leather or palm-fibre (■— aJ J^-). The latter would be
well described by the term %v\t,va, an epithet which, as has been noted, Strabo applied to the
Libyan headstall. The slings were more probably made of leather. Grass-rope (of Lygeum
spartum) was also known ; a cord thereof bound the grave-clothes of a nomad burial which I
excavated in 19 10 at Gerbah (near Siwah).
Water-Skins or Kerabah have already been noted as part of the Libyan military gear.
Baskets were used, as is attested by one of the Benl Hasan paintings, where the Libyan women
are seen carrying their children in baskets on their backs (Plate V.).
Skin Mats were known, though Procopius, either describing a poor community or indulging
his tendency to exaggerate the barbarism of the tribesmen, says that only the great men among
the Moors enjoyed these luxuries. 6
The Libyans had doubtless many objects of which no notices exist. They must,
for instance, have had needles and thread, leather sacks (besides those used for stones
in war) and awls for making them, pots for seething flesh, flint and fire-stones, and
tools for the working of hides. Those who occupied the northern parts of the Fayum,
and were agriculturists, had metates on which to grind their grain ; these relics of their
occupation are yet to be found on their old camp-sites.
* *
Music and Dancing. — Libyan music was of the most primitive character. Its
simplest form — for from an anthropological point of view this may be considered as
" music " — was the ecstatic shouting noticed by Herodotus as characteristic of the
Libyans of his day, and which is common all over North Africa at the present time.
1 BAR iii. § 584. 2 For these vases, W. M. Milller, op. cit. ii. p. 123 sq. and fig. 46. 3 BAR iii. § 589.
* Lucian, De dipsadibus, 7. Lucian is here following a source known to Pliny (cf. Lucian, op. cit. 3, on a flying
scorpion, with Pliny's description of the same marvel, Hist. Nat. xi. 25) ; cf. Pliny, op. cit. x. 1.
5 Mela i. 8. 6 Procopius, De bello Vandal, ii. 6.
154 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
The Greek historian remarks that, in his opinion, the loud cries uttered in Hellenic
sacred rites were derived from Africa " since the Libyan women are greatly given to
such cries, and utter them very sweetly." x These cries were the modern zaghark, heard
by all and mentioned by many travellers in Egypt, the Sahara, and the Barbary States. 2
The zaghark is made from the throat, a vibrant quality being given to the prolonged
shrill cry by the rapid vibration of the tongue ; and it is held to a single pitch.
Besides this crying, with which the modern inhabitants of Eastern Libya signalize
any event of importance, the ancient occupants of the country had, of course, their songs.
These were in some instances religious. Curtius, for example, mentions that in the
worship of Amon at Siwah the women walked in processions, " singing a certain un-
couth hymn in the manner of the country." 3 Just what force lies in the last words may
be divined by a consideration of modern Imushagh metrics. Among the Imushagh the
metrical unit is, as in French poetics, the syllable, no attention being paid to stress or
quantity. The commonest metres are enneasyllabic or decasyllabic, which are sometimes,
though rarely, combined in the same poem. In decasyllabic verse, the caesural pause
often comes in the middle of a word, which is but one of the very numerous forms of
licence to be found in barbaric poetry. Other liberties are the frequent elisions and
contractions, the changes of singulars into plurals, of masculines into feminines, or vice
versa. An Imushagh poem usually, though not invariably, carries the same rhyme, or
rather assonance, throughout its length in the final syllables of the lines. This is made
easy by the great latitude allowed in rhyme. An assonance such as is contained in the
words denta, amser/ia, teg/a, or in the words iiniri, ikki, is readily accepted. Even
consonantal assonance is permitted, e.g. auilan and egen, or tusid and ged, are regarded as
true assonances, it being required in this last case only that the vowels preceding the final
consonant should be somewhat alike. 4 Under these circumstances it is not surprising
that the Imushagh are facile makers, more especially as they sometimes discard even
consonantal assonance and use blank verse. Their poetry is, in general, topical in
character, dealing with, current events and persons well known to the audiences, and
it is allusive in the highest degree. They sing it always in a minor cadence, and often
with a long-drawn and quavering tremulo. 5 The primitive qualities of this poetry
justify the supposition that the " uncouth hymns in the manner of the country "
mentioned by Curtius were composed in much the same mode.
The musical instruments of the Eastern Libyans are known only from the
1 Herodotus iv. 189.
2 E.g. by G. F. Lyon, Travels in North Africa, etc., p. 52 sq„ p. 71 et alibi. W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites,
p. 4.31, supposes that the Libyan okoXvyr) was a cry of ritual lamentation for the sacrificial victim. For this there is no
explicit evidence. To-day the zagharit is raised on the entry of any notable personage into a camp or village, on the
reception of startling news, at deaths and births, etc.
3 Q. Curtius, De gestis Alexandri Magni, iv. 7, . . . matronae virgincsque fatrio more inconditum quoddam carmen
canentes . . .
4 I.e., -en and -in, -en and -an are allowed ; but not so -in and -an or -en and -un.
6 This brief notice of Imushagh poetics is based on the long one by A. Hanoteau, Essai de grammaire de la langue
TamacheK, p. 201 sqq., and on notes personally collected.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
'55
scantiest evidence. A form of castanets appears to have been used, as seen in the
Egyptian representation given in Fig. 62. a.
An instrument of a character slightly more developed is the double-headed drum
shown in Fig. 62, /;. In shape it is like a boat's water-breaker, and from the way in
which it is corded and crossed it seems perhaps to have been made either ol pottery
or ol staves like a keg. It was headed with skins at both ends, was slung from the
shoulders of the drummer by bandolier, and played with the hands as is the modern
Sudanese derbukkah.
Ol the known musical instruments capable of producing notes, one was a simple
pipe with a flaring mouth (Fig. 62, c), and with an unknown number of stops. This was
C
Fig. 62.
probably made ol wood, the modern single pipes of the Siwans and Wagilans being ol
that material, or manufactured from the leg-bones of some large bird. Another wind-
instrument was the double-pipe, the presence of which among the Libyans is mentioned
by Duris Samius. 1
The most advanced instrument of which we have any ancient evidence was a little
harp with a right-angled frame shown in Fig. 62, d. This instrument was also used
generally in Egypt, along with the more
complex forms. All the instruments here
enumerated were probably used in concert by
the Eastern Libyans on the occasion of their
public entertainments, since in an Egyptian
relief the castanets, drum, pipe, and harp
are all represented as being played in concert. -
The Eastern Libyans had both dances
and ceremonial processions. War-dances
were practised by the Libyan mercenaries in
the Egyptian army at the time of the New
Empire (cf. Fig. 63, a war-dance ot the
Temehu auxiliaries). In the scene cited the performers are divided into those who stand
1 Duris Samius, Frag. 34 in FHG. Cf. Nonnus, Dionysiaca, xxiv. 38, and Euripides, Hercules furens, 6S5 sq., wapa
tit \e/\)'os oTTaroi'Oi' fhoXirav kcu Mfivv avkov ; Hcsychius in verb. At/Jus, . . 6 ami Aipvrji avXoi.
2 J. G. Wilkinson, The Ancient Egyptians, vol. i. p. 456, and cut no. 224.
Fig. 63.
156 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
clattering time with their sticks and those who are posturing and leaping about ; another
representation 1 even more strongly recalls the war-dances of many primitive peoples,
especially those of numerous American Indian tribes. As a sort of war-dance may also be
mentioned the sham-fight of the Ausean virgins mentioned by Herodotus. In connection
with dancing, it is remarkable that the Siwans, on the "birthday" or moled of Sheykh Sidi
Suleyman, the patron saint of Siwah, perform dances of a character totally unlike that of
the Arab and Sudanese dances given by them at other times of the year. In the moled
dances, companies of youths stand in long lines facing each other, and go through various
evolutions which recall strangely the "Sir Roger de Coverley" or other English country-
dances. Its non-Arabic and non-Sudanese character proves it to be an ancient survival.
Processions seem to have been a recognized part of Libyan religious ceremonies.
The Ausean " Athena " was honoured annually by a procession around Lake Tritonis ;
the worship of Amon was attended with ritual processions ; Silius has described
the mourning processions about the body of the Princess Asbyte ; 2 and there was
also an annual sacred procession or progress in which the Theban Amon was for
twelve days carried about Libya. 3
Petroglyphs and Sculptures. — Petroglyphs both of ancient and modern date are
common in those parts of North Africa where suitable rock exists. In Eastern Libya,
the extensive miocene limestone area has discouraged this form of primitive artistic
expression, but rock-scribings are nevertheless found in the places suitable for their
carving. Much Libyan material undoubtedly exists in the sandstone region of the Nile
Valley," 1 but it is not possible to separate it from the similar Egyptian work. No
Nilotic scribings, therefore, are here reproduced ;' it is better to turn at once to Fezzan,
whence have been reported several rock-drawings.
Three petroglyphs from Teli-Sagha, which were discovered by Heinrich Barth,
have already been cited as evidence upon Libyan hunting. The pictograph (Fig. 6)
in which two huntsmen in animal disguises approach a buffalo may be regarded as a
very tolerable specimen of primitive graphic art. Despite the conventionality which
has, in order to give " perspective " to the scene, made the hunters in the foreground so
large in comparison to the remoter quarry, there is the same quality of liveliness in
this representation, and the same infantile but sincere striving after truthfulness which
is seen in the Bushman drawings of South Africa. The block on which this pictograph
1 Temehu mercenaries with their weapons, in I. Rosellini, Monumenti, etc., vol. ii. pi. 117, 2.
2 Silius Italicus ii. 265.
3 Vide infra, p. 190 n. 8.
4 G. Maspero, Struggle of the Nations, p. 767, note 4, writes : "I attribute to the Libyans, whether mercenaries
or tribes hovering on the Egyptian frontier, the figures cut everywhere on the rocks, which no one up till now has
reproduced or studied." This seems to me too sweeping a statement, especially as the remains have not been "reproduced
or studied." Most of the glyphs that I have examined are clearly not Libyan but Egyptian.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 157
is scribed measures 1.22 m. by 0.91 m. In Fig. 5, as has been said, a wild animal is
seen walking into a pitfall. Here, as in the first example, is seen the anxious fidelity of
the artist, as in his endeavour to show all four legs of the animaL 1 The third drawing
(Fig. 7) portrays a herd of wild cattle with even more realism. This last picture
is on a block, of stone measuring 3.89 m. by 1.50 m. and is therefore fairly large. It
is noticeable that all three of these glyphs try to present, as is usual in early art,
subjects in motion. The technique is good, and in the early Saharan manner. The
representations are characterized by the large size of the figures, the deep, clean-cut
lines, the realistic treatment, and by the picturing of animals which have since become
extinct, at least in Libya. This is in contradistinction to the late, or " Libyco-
Berber " glyphs of North Africa. These, as a rule, are small, rude, done with a pecked
line, and are not at all, or only slightly, patinated. 2
There have been vague rumours of numerous sculptures to be found between the
Chad Road and the Nile, but although these reports are perhaps based upon fact, they
must be passed over for lack of definite information. The sculptures actually known in
Eastern Libya are few, and are all late. The most interesting exist at Ghirzah, a point
some 70 leagues south of Tripoli town (lat. 31 10' N., long. 14 41' E.). The
reliefs are widely reputed among the modern inhabitants of Tripolitana and Fezzan to
be "petrified," an explanation which the sterile Mohammadan fancy is ever ready to apply
to any ancient representations of men or of animals. The ruins of Ghirzah were first
visited by Captain Smyth, R.N., in the early part of the eighteenth century (March
1 8 17). In an abstract from his Journal, sent to Captain Beechey, Captain Smyth thus
describes the ruins : —
The site is mountainous and bare, presenting only dreary masses of lime and sandstone, inter-
sected with the ramifications of the great wadie of Zemzem. And although I had not allowed my
imagination to rise at all in proportion to the exhilarating accounts I had heard, I could not but be
sorely disappointed on seeing some ill-constructed houses of comparatively modern date, on the
break of a rocky hill, and a few tombs at a small distance beyond the ravine. On approaching the
latter, I found them of a mixed style, and in very indifferent taste, ornamented with ill-proportioned
columns and clumsy capitals. The regular architectural divisions of frieze and cornice being neglected,
nearly the whole depth of the entablatures was loaded with absurd representations of warriors, hunts-
men, camels, horses, and other animals in low relief, or rather scratched on the freestone of which
they were constructed. The pedestals were mostly without a dye [sic], and the sides bore a vile
imitation of arabesque decoration. The human figures and animals are miserably executed, and are
generally small, though they vary in size from about three feet and a half [1.46 m.] to a foot
f.70 m.1 in height, even on the same tombs, which adds to their ridiculous effect ; whilst some
palpable and obtruding indecencies render them disgusting. 3
1 In this connection I may be allowed to point out a striking analogy in technique between the now famous paintings
of Altamira and the less-known glyphs of Africa Minor. In the paintings, the prehistoric artist has often turned up the
hoofs of the bisons, etc., which he has drawn, so that the cleft in the hoof is visible. The same distortion is found in the
prehistoric graphic art of North Africa, as in the magnificent ram of Bu 'Alem, reproduced in Fig. 84.
2 E.-F. Gautier, Sahara algerien, p. 87 sqq., for a short but excellent bibliography and discussion of the differences
between the two main classes of Saharan glyphs.
3 F. W. and H. W. Beechey, Expedition to the Northern Coast of Africa, pp. 505 sqq., 509.
i5'
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Despite the disappointment felt by Captain Smyth all but a century ago, it is clear
that these ruins are so strongly native in character as to be of great interest. In 1858,
a French consular servant in Tripoli obtained fragments of the sculptures through the
agency of an Arab. From the brief note that appeared concerning these specimens, 1
one very interesting point is to be gathered. The " sculptures " are described as being
mere flat relief, without modelling. They may therefore be regarded as occupying a
position half-way between the petroglyphs and true modelled relief. It is probable that
they are the work of sedentary Libyans of the Empire, who were inspired by Roman
models. Works similar, but with stronger foreign influence, from the ruins at Shabet
Um el-Harab, have already been cited in connection with Libyan dress (Figs. 14, 15).
Of these sculptures nothing more need be said than that they are essentially provincial
Roman.
A reliel exists at Slunt, in Southern Cyrenaica, cut on a rock-face in a wady, of six
curious figures. The carvings are roughly 1.50 m. high and 2 m. in length, and
were discovered by the Italian traveller Haimann. A moulding of the
pattern shown in Fig. 64, associated with these sculptures," dates them
as of Roman times. The workmanship is very crude, and the figures are
badly weathered (Fig. 34). Four of the figures represent adults, two are children,
three are females. The upraised hand of the last figure on the right suggests that the
monument has been influenced by
classical art, and that it is funereal in
character. One striking peculiarity of
these sculptures is the bigness of the
heads of the figures. A little to the left
Fig. 6 + .
a
b
Fig. 65. (After Haimann/
of this group are a rock-tomb and some confused ruins, among which were found other
fragments of sculptures, and, in particular, the two pieces shown in Fig. 65, a, b.
One of these, a, is $y cm. in height, and shows a rude figure, semi-recumbent, with
one hand above the head and the other placed against the temple. The other piece,
b, is battered out of all significance. :i
A work earlier than the Slunt sculptures was discovered by Duveyrier near
1 E. du Tour : Note in the Comptes reintus de F Acad, ties Inscript., 185X, p. 152. For a general view of the Ghirzah
ruins, sec A. Ghisleri, Tripolitania e Cirenaica, p. 77.
2 A. Ghisleri, op. cit. p. 51. A photograph reproduced from J. W. Gregory, Report of the Commission sent out h\ the
Jewish Territorial Organization, etc. Plate facing p. 14.
3 G. Haimann, Cirenaica, p. 86 sqq., tor the best account of these remains.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 159
Ghadames (Fig. 33), and has been mentioned in the discussion of hair-dressing, etc. 1 The
size of this stela and its material are unknown. The scene shows a female figure, facing
in profile toward the right, seated on a simple sort of camp-chair, with feet placed on
a stool. The woman wears a long robe, and has the hair dressed in a curious fashion.
The right arm is extended, and in the raised right hand is a palm-frond or an ostrich-
plume, near the end of which is fastened a small triangular object. From the right
arm depends a short tab of the robe (?). Behind the seated female figure is another of
much less size, but similar to it, apparently an attendant. Before the larger figure is
seen half an arched or vaulted structure, toward which the frond or plume mentioned
is extended. Beneath this vault was a third figure now unfortunately broken away
except for the right forearm and biceps. One of the vertical supports of the canopy
may still be seen, as also the edge of the seat (?) of the missing figure.
There can be no doubt that this monument reflects New Empire Egyptian
influence. As a whole, the Ghadames relief recalls strongly a class of Egyptian
religious sculptures, and this impression receives further support from an examination
of the details. Thus the " camp-stool " and the footstool are both of Egyptian form,
while the vaulted shelter suggests those Egyptian shrines with arched tops of which one
is pictured in the tomb of Rameses V. Though displaying in these details, and in general
composition and feeling, strong Egyptian influence, the monument is certified as of
local origin by the barbaric dress of the figures. It must be remembered that, in later
times, Ghadames (Cydamus) was a town of such consequence that foreign influences
made themselves felt there. The significance of the relief is obviously religious ; the
seated figure and its attendant are going through some form of ceremonial before a god or
spirit within the shrine ; further than this, however, it would be rash to venture. 2 The
work may be provisionally placed within the limits of the Late New Empire.
The material presented above must suffice, until further discoveries in the field, to
illustrate Libyan art. Scanty as it is, it is significant. It shows that, whereas the
people were fair masters of the neolithic art of rock-scribing, they had not reached a
stage at which sculpture in the round was a natural and easy means of expression.
Architecture. — No truly megalithic monuments have been reported from Libya east
of Tunisia. For over fifty years from the time of their discovery, the remains of
Roman oil-presses of the torcular type were repeatedly asserted to be megaliths, 3 but
1 H. Duveyrier, op. cit. PI. x. fig. I, and text, p. 250 sq.
2 C. L. Melix, L' Interpretation de quelques inscriptions libyques, p. 98, has exhibited more zeal than critical power in his
comments on this relief.
3 H. Barth, Reisen und Entdeckungen, vol. i. p. 63 ; E. von Bary, Vber Senam und Tumuli im Kustengebirge von Tripoli-
tanien in the Zeitschr.fur Ethnologie, vol. viii. p. 378 sqq. Idem, Senams et tumuli de la chaine de montagnes de la cote tripolitaine,
in the Rev. d' Ethnographic, vol. ii. p. 426 sqq. ; H. S. Cowper, Hill of the Graces, passim (mainly a description of these
"megaliths") ; A. H. Keane, Africa, vol. i. p. 138 ; G. E. Smith, The Ancient Egyptians, etc., passim (the thesis of this
last publication is based mainly on the wrong assumption that Tripoli abounds in megalithic remains).
160 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
their real nature has now become generally recognized. 1 Similarly, traces of cistvaens
and alignments reported from Tripolitana as being of great age are all either doubtful,
or certainly late. 3
This is the more noteworthy, as dolmens, menhirs, cistvaens, and cromlechs of
primitive style are fairly numerous in Syria. The scarcity of such monuments in
Eastern Libya is indeed striking, and is hardly to be accounted for except on ethno-
logical grounds ; the rapid diminution of rude stone monuments, as one passes eastward
along the North African littoral zone, suggests that in the Moghreb once existed a
megalith-building race which was never strongly established in the east. This suspicion
tends to become conviction when it is noted that there is, to an extent quite as great as
in the east, an absence of true megalithic remains in the Sahara. 4 In western Europe
and in Spain, and in southern Italy (Terra d'Otranto), 5 exist megalithic monuments
having distinct affinities with those of north-west Africa. Since in central Italy such
monuments are not found, the natural inference seems to be that the megalith builders
drifted southward through the Iberian Peninsula, established themselves in the Moghreb,
and, by way of Malta and Sicily, even reached southern Italy. The wave that there
expended itself in the north appears in the east to have spent its force in Tunisia.
If one attempts to divine what people these megalith builders were, the strong prob-
ability appears that they were the Nordic xanthochroids or blonds. That people seems
to have come into Africa by way of western Europe, and in the Moghreb, where the
rude stone monuments are most numerous, the bulk of the fair Africans is found. This
theory, which is fairly well sustained by other facts, and which would attribute the
African megaliths to the xanthochroids whom the Berbers have partially assimilated,
was first formulated and supported by General Faidherbe, 6 and may still be accepted as
essentially true.
In the historic period some of the Eastern Libyans had strongholds, remains of which
exist in the vicinity of Bueb Bay (S.W. Cyrenaica). In the precarious lives of the tribes-
men it was of great importance that they should have within their area some safe place to
which they could resort in time of war, where they could lay up such booty or super-
fluous goods as came into their hands, and where they could count upon finding a strong
band of their fellows. That such centres existed is explicitly stated by two classical
writers. " Their leaders," says Diodorus, speaking of the nomadic Libyans, " have
1 H. M. de Mathuisieulx, Une Mission scientifique en Tripolitaine in the Nouvelles Archives des Missions Scientifiques,
vol. x. p. 272 ; cf. D. R. Maclver and A. Wilken, Libyan Notes, p. 78. The last two writers say explicitly and truly :
"many supposed prehistoric monuments of Tripoli are nothing more remarkable than Roman oil-presses."
2 I have seen ruins of possible cistvaens on Seal Island and near Benghazi. H. Duveyrier, of. cit. p. 279 and pi. xv.
fig. 3, reports a third from Fezzan. Cf. F. Bernard, Note au sujet de quelques monuments de pierres brutes releves chez les
Touareg Azgar ; and idem, Observations archeologiques, etc. The remains I saw were quite undatable, but by association
appeared late, as is certainly the case with Duveyrier's cistvaen, which is of worked slabs.
8 As in the case of the "alignment" at Messah, for which see H. S. Cowper, op. cit. p. 168 sqq. and fig. 79
(photographed by H. W. Blundell). * E.-F. Gautier, Sahara algerien, p. 61.
6 P. Pallary, Instructions pour les recherches prehistoriques, etc., p. 35.
6 L. L. C. Faidherbe, Recherches anthropologiques sur les tombeaux megalithiques de Roknia ; idem, Quelques mots sur Pethno-
graphie du Nord de /' A/rique, etc. ; idem, Notices ethnographiques.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 161
commonly no towns," but " only strongholds near water." In these keeps " they store
up the superfluous parts of their booty." x This is confirmed by Pliny the Elder, and a
stronghold such as those he and Diodorus mentioned is probably meant by the writer
of the Stadiasmus 2 when he says that at Eperus, 3 which lay in a desolate part of Syrtis
Major, was a native fort.
The literary evidence in regard to these Libyan forts is in itself sufficient to establish
the fact of their existence ; but, in addition, it fortunately happens that the actual remains
of such buildings have been seen in Eastern Libya by modern travellers, and it is possible
to gain some idea of their size, plan, and construction.
The ruins of one of these strongholds, of a rude and primitive type, are discernible
to-day at Hawah Segal, in south-western Cyrenaica. 4 The remains consist of large,
rudely-shaped stones of oblong shape, planted in the earth so as to form a rectangle about
36 by 45 metres. At each corner the stones form small circular bays, about 2 m. in
diameter, marking probably — so small is their size — the foundations of circular angle-
buttresses meant to give strength to the walls at their points of juncture. In the middle
of each of the sides of the fort a pair of larger stones, placed near together, mark the
places of the doorways. The rough sketch of Haimann, who discovered this site, is
given in Fig. 66. 5 Originally, Hawah Segal was probably a stockade, or a sort of
zaribah, the walls being made of mud and brush or small stones.
About a mile from these ruins is a second group, built of fewer, but larger, stones ;
while to the north lies yet a third, smaller than the other, circular, and enclosing two
large cisterns.
The most considerable native remains in Eastern Libya are to be found in the forts
built of polygonal masonry in the south-western part of Cyrenaica. At a point just east
of Ghemines, 6 in the Syrtis Major, south of Benghazi, " there are," writes Beechey,
" several interesting remains of ancient forts, some of which are altogether on a different
plan from those [Graeco-Roman ones] which have been already described." 7 The
country in the vicinity of these forts and to the north of them is largely " encumbered
by blocks of stone, placed upright in long lines, which are crossed at right angles by
others, so as to form a labyrinth of inclosures. This peculiarity appears to be occasioned
by the nature of the soil, which, although rich and excellent, is covered everywhere with
a surface of stone of various thickness, which it is of course necessary to break up and
remove, in order to cultivate the soil beneath. To move the blocks, which are taken
1 Diodorus Siculus iii. 69. 3. 2 Stadiasmus Maris Magni, § 86, . . . <f>povpi.ov Bapfidpuv.
3 On this place, see H. Barth, Wanderungen, etc., vol. i. p. 368.
4 G. Haimann, Cirenaica in Bollet. della Soc. Geogr. Ital., 1881, p. 248 sqq. and fig. 2 = idem, Cirenaica, 2nd ed.,
Milan, i886,pp. 58 and cut, 59.
5 Fig. 66 is reproduced from Haimann's article in the Bolletino, fig. 2. In the 2nd edition of the separate publica-
tion the same figure is reproduced, but signed " Marzorati," and so retouched as to make the ruins appear more imposing.
6 H. Barth, op. cit., vol. i. p. 355. Ghemines is there convincingly identified with the ancient Caminos (of the
Itin. Anton.) : {Chaminos in the Escurial codex). Barth also notes {he. cit.) the occurrence of groups of these forts at
Magrunah, Tel Amun, and Ferashid, between Ghemines and Benghazi.
7 F. W. and H. W. Beechey, Expedition to the Northern Coast of Africa, p. 244.
I 62
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
up altogether from the ground, would be an endless . . . labor, and they have accord-
ingly been ranged . . . as . . . mentioned, serving at the same time as boundaries to
property and as impediments to the approach of an enemy . . . - 1 We discovered that
long alleys were occasionally left in different directions, serving as roads. . . . We
observed that in the vicinity of the forts the walls were usually placed much closer
together, and the inclosures were in consequence smaller than in other parts."
The forts themselves are "built of large unequal-sized stones, put together without
■ •- .. ;~ jjjgjgs-B.
Fic. 66. (After Haimann.)
any cement, and made to fit one into another in the manner which has been called Cyclo-
pian." :i Broadly speaking, the size of these structures is about 30 to 45 m. in length, by
24 to 30 m. in breadth. 1 "Their form, generally speaking, is square, with the angles
rounded off, and some of them are filled up with earth, well beaten down, to within 6 or
8 feet (1.83 m. to 2.44 m.) of the top ; the upper part of the wall being left as a parapet
to the terrace which is formed of the earth heaped within it. In the centre of the terrace
we sometimes found foundations of [later ?] buildings, as if chambers had been erected
upon it ; the roofs of which, in that case, must have been higher than the outer walls
1 It is impossible from the description to say whether this is the true explanation. 1 have seen no such alignments
in fertile Marmarica.
- F. W. and H. W. Beechcy, Expedition, etc., p. 2 5 1 sq. H. Barth, op. fit. p. 353, describes in similar terms this district
%titiz. bedeckt mil ordnungsmassig in Reihen aufgestellten Striven.
3 F. W. and H. W. Beechcy, op. at. p. 244. For " Cyclopian " should probably be substituted the word "polygonal."
1 H. Barth, op. iit. p. 354. The dimensions are there given in feet — 100 to 150 by So to 100.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART 163
which formed the parapet ; and a space seems always to have been left between these
central buildings and the parapet, in which the garrison placed themselves when
employed in defending the fort. An opening like a window was observed in the parapet
of one of the Cyclopian castles of Ghemines, which might have been used for drawing
up l those who entered the fort, as there was no other mode of entrance whatever." 2
Near most of these strongholds lies " a small rising ground with one or two wells in
it, having the remains of building about it ; they were generally within 50 yards of the
fort, by which they were commanded. 3 In some instances we found wells in the trenches
surrounding the forts, at others within the outer walls," which enclosed the trenches,
though they lay " more frequently without the forts altogether." 4 Tombs, cut in the
rocks, occur in the vicinity of some of the forts.
" The castles have, most of them," to quote Beechey further, " been surrounded with
a trench, on the outer side of which there is generally a low wall strongly built of large
stones. Some of the trenches . . . excavated in the solid rock . . . are of considerable
depth and width, and in one instance, occurring between Ghimenez [sic] and Benghazi, we
observed chambers excavated in the side of the trench, as ... in that which surrounds
the second Pyramid [at Gizah]. 5 . . . The trench of the fort here alluded to is about
five and twenty feet in width [about 7.62 m.J, and its depth about fifteen [about 4.57 m.J ;
the fort itself is an hundred and twenty-five feet in length, and ninety in width [about
38.10 m. by 27.3 m.J, of a quadrangular form, and in the centre of each of its [four ?]
sides is a quadrangular projection, sloping outward from the top [i.e. battering] of twenty
feet in length by twelve [6.04 m. by 3.66], which appears to have served both as a tower
and a buttress." 6
It is from these details that the drawings in Figs. 67, 67a, 68, etc., have been made.
Fig. 67 shows in plan a typical fort of the Ghemines group, the details being
derived from the general statements of Barth and Beechey ; Fig. 6ya, a transverse
central cross-section of the same. Fig. 68 represents the stronghold for which Beechey
1 H. Barth, loc. cit., Zu Thoren ist natUrlkh auf diese Weise gar keine Gelegenheit, und man musste die Leute offenbar hinauf-
winden, wozu bei einigen sich eine Offhung oben in der Mauer befndet.
2 F. W. and H. W. Beechey, op. cit. p. 244 sq.
3 Ibid. p. 245. The traces of buildings about the wells "were sometimes very considerable" ; but could testify only
to there having been a number of square-built rooms of varying size placed about the wells with some show of regularity,
ibid. p. 246. i Ibid. p. 146.
5 I.e. the chambers were in the outside face of the trench, and not under the fort itself. To judge from their posi-
tion, the chambers were magazines.
6 F. W. and H. W. Beechey, op. cit. p. 245 sqq. It is not said whether the measurements were taken along the top
of the walls or along the base ; but in constructing the plan and the sections (Figs. 67, 67*7, 68, 68a), I have assumed the
former, since the text says the buttresses sloped " outward from the top," whereas if the measurements were taken below it
would be more proper to say they sloped " inward toward the top." On page 246 one reads : " The measurements [of the
fort] are here given in the rough, but they will be found in detail by a reference to the ground plan and elevation No. 9 in
the plate containing the details of some of the forts." Unhappily, this is one of several of the plates of Beechey's book
which were never published then, nor, as was promised (p. 571 note) later, "with others made in Egypt and Nubia."
Search for these missing drawings in the British Museum and the Admiralty Archives has proved unavailing. It is greatly
to be regretted that Barth, a careful observer for his time, did not record these important remains more particularly than
he has done.
164
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
r~
Q TRA -
h,id
CES - 1L.-..,s1
OF
BUILD-
DINGS'
o
WELLS
o
Fig. 67
:ZJ.^mL\
Fit.. 67 a.
IS S i
\L
B
Fig. 68.
I S M
_D
Fig. 68 a.
Fig. 68 A.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
165
gives his most detailed account. Figs. 68tf, 68^, two sections on the lines A-B and C-D
in the plan. A stronghold of the Ghemines type existing at a point 1 between Benghazi
and Wagilah is given in Fig. 69, 6cy?, 69^. The details from which the sketches have
been constructed are thus given by Hamilton : —
Henayah is a strong fortress of very early architecture, and by far the
most curious
The squared mass of rock on which the keep is
C
construction I had met with in these countries
built is not higher than the surrounding
ground ; but it is isolated by a dry
moat, fourteen feet [4.27 m.J wide and
nine [2.74 m.J deep, cut in the living
rock. On the square mass, eighty feet
[24.38 m.J on every side, left in the
centre, rose the walls of the keep, ot
which only a few teet in height now
remain. It is approached by means of
a wall, hardly fifteen inches [38 cm. J
broad, which is built across the moat on
one side. This wall was, perhaps, once
the support ot a movable bridge. The
interior of the rock's base is entirely [?J
excavated, forming a centre chamber,
now open to the sky, and entered by
a flight of steps ; round this chamber
are cut a number of vaults, communicat-
ing with it, and having small openings, to
admit light and air, pierced in the sides.
This is, however, only the smallest part
of the old stronghold, its size being in-
creased by extensive caves, to the number
of twenty-eight, cut in the rock, beyond
the moat, into which they all open. In
no part of these laborious excavations
could I discover any inscription, or
evidence of their origin, but judging
from the beautiful execution ot the
whole — from the form of the lamp-
niches which are cut in several of the
vaults, as well as the general style, re-
sembling what is found in some of the
Greek isles— I have no hesitation in ascribing it to a date coeval with the best monuments of Cyrene. 2
Like the Ghemines group, Henayah commands wells, which contain the last
sweet water to be met with before reaching Wagilah. 3
There can be no doubt these forts are indigenous, since they are quite different both
1 About seven miles S.S.W. from Agedabiah. _
- J. Hamilton, Wanderings, p. 175. Needless to say, the plans based on these data are capable of gmng only the
most general idea of the building,
to centre chamber ? etc.
Fig. 69 a.
How did the steps run r
What size were the vaults r What was the width from wall
Ibid. p. 1 76.
i66
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
in plan and structure from the Punic, Greek, or Roman fortifications of Africa, and they
are of commonest occurrence in a region where the foreign element was so weak as to
be of least importance. Barth supposed that the forts belonged to the Auschisae, 1 since
those he saw were on the verge of their old territories ; 2 but it has been shown earlier
in this essay that the most stable ethnic group in the eastern portion ol the Syrtica
Regio was that of the Nasamones, within whose northern frontiers the Ghemines forts lie ;
and it is possible that to these tribesmen and not to their less powerful neighbours
the strongholds once belonged. At all events, they testify that the builders either
possessed no little skill in building stone structures themselves, or that they commanded
and directed this skill in others.
In regard to date, it can only be said that by their style they should be fairly early ;
and, since they lie within the Mediterranean sphere, they may be provisionally assigned
to the great era of polygonal masonry structures, i.e. circa the ninth and eighth centuries b.c.
They probably are the structures reputed by the Greeks to have been, like similar
ones in Sicily, Sardinia, and Italy, the handiwork of Cronus, 3 a possibility which would
not in the least interfere with their having served in full historic times as the strongholds
mentioned by Diodorus Siculus. The forts of this type, it may be said without reserve,
are the most important architectural monuments of indigenous East Libya, and those
which call most imperatively for scientific investigation.
In concluding this topic, mention may be made of the fort shown in Figs. 70,
yoa, 71, 72. This structure has the appearance of being of a late date (presumably
Fig. 70.
/y
Fig. 70a.
Roman), but from its having the interior of the enclosures partly filled with earth may
be regarded as related in some way to the Ghemines strongholds. It stands in the
ah Werke einrr einheimischen
1 H. Barth, op. at. p. 354, kkine Foils von gtmz besondrcr nationaler Bauweise . die .
Volkerschaft, vol/ unzweifelhaft der Auschisai darstellen.
- Herodotus iv. 171. s Diodorus Siculus iii. 61. 3 ; cf. Crates in Lydus, De mevsibus iv. 4.8.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
167
western part of the Gulf of Bombah, about a mile inland, and consists (Figs. 70, 70^) of
two rectangular enclosures, a greater (ca. 30 by 27 m.) and a less (ca. 20 by 25 m.). The
latter on its eastern side shows the remains of a smaller enclosure (tower?) built against
"r«
Fig. 71.
the wall ; the former, outside the northern wall, has the remains of a double
ramp, ca. 2 m. wide, leading up from the east and the west to the middle of the
Fig. 72.
wall, and almost to its top (Fig. 72). Within each enclosure are the remains of several
Arab grave-circles of small stones. A narrow way, about 3.60 m. wide, separates the
1 68 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
two enclosures. 1 The walls, which are ruinous, still stand in places as high as 4 m.,
and are built of small rudely-shaped stones, laid in courses.
The district in which this fort now stands is one which received slight Roman
influence, and is near the site first occupied by the Theran colonists on the Libyan main-
land. 2 The plan of the structure, however, leads to the conclusion that one is here
confronted with a Libyan building.
The habitations of the Eastern Libyans were anciently, as to-day, caves, permanent
houses, or movable shelters. In Cyrenaica are a number of inhabited caverns among
the hills of Gebel el-Ahdar, and in the Gebel Gharyan are whole troglodytic com-
munities dwelling in artificial caverns. 3
The bulk of the Eastern Libyans, however, being semi-nomadic, did not live in
stable dwellings, but in tents or booths. The Libyan invaders of Egypt in the
XlXth Dynasty had tents of leather, 4 like those still used in Fezzan. That, at a period
much later, tents continued to be used, as at the present day, among the Arabs of
Tripolitana and western Egypt, is attested by the descriptive term %ki\vIt<u applied by
Ptolemy 5 to certain of the East Libyans of his time.
Besides tents, another form of movable shelter was in use among the Libyans.
This was the mapalium 6 of the Roman writers, a portable hut or booth like the gher
of the Kalmuks of modern Astrakan. 7 Shelters of this sort were used by the Nasamones,
whose " dwellings," says Herodotus, " are made of the stems of asphodels and reeds,
wattled together."
These booths could be carried about from place to place, 8 and were little more than
flimsy screens against sun and wind. 9 Similar structures were used by another Libyan
people, farther west, if the name Asphodelides, given to them by Diodorus, 10 may be
supposed a descriptive (like the term Xk^vItm noted above), referring to the use of
booths of asphodel-wattling, to the employment of which among the Nasamones
Herodotus testifies. Mapalia were used by the Numidians and Mauri in the west, 11
in the interior of Marmarica, 12 and by the African herdsmen generally. 13 In the time
of the Punic Wars, the Numidian soldiers had no other shelter in the field than these
huts, 14 a circumstance which, because of their inflammability, made it easy for Scipio
on one occasion to fire the camp of Syphax. 15 On the outskirts of the Afro-Roman
1 So in my note-book, and therefore so in the plans ; but I confess that my memory recalls and one of the
photographs (Fig. 71) seems to show, a slightly greater interval. The visit I made to this site (in 1909) was attended
with circumstances which quite precluded the making of such accurate observations as the ruins merited.
2 H. Barth, op. cit. p. 507 and notes. 8 H. Vischer, Across the Sahara, p. 38 sqq. * BAR iii. § 589.
5 Ptolemy iv. 7 § 10. In southern Fezzan. According to Lucian {De dipsadibus,% 2) the Garamantes were tent-dwellers.
6 Generally found in the plural in a collective sense — mapalia, as in Festus, p. 258 (Egger), Mapalia casae Poenicae
appellantur, in quibus quia nihil est secreti, solet solute viventibus obici id vocabulum, etc. The origin of the name is obscure,
but generally supposed to be Punic. A variant is magalia. 7 J. Deniker, Races of Man, p. 164 and fig. 44.
8 Herodotus iv. 190. 9 Hellanicus, Frag. 93 in FHG = Athenaeus, Deipnos. xi. p. 462 b.
10 Diodorus Siculus ji. 57. 5. n Sallust, lugurtha, xviii. ; Pliny v. 3, xvi. 37.
12 Mela i. 8. Among the people of Marmarica away from the coast domkilia sunt quae mapalia appellantur. Yet
farther south the nomads utque a pabulo ducta sunt, ita se ac tuguria sua permovent.
13 Vergil, Georg. iii. 339-340 ; Livy xxix. 31. u Livy xxx. 3. 1B Ibid. xxx. 5.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART
169
towns groups of mapalia were to be found collected, like the Arab or Berber shelters
which are pitched outside the modern settlements in North Africa to-day. It was for
this reason that the name mapalia, mappalia came to be used to designate a native quarter.
Thus, in an inscription found at Henshir Mettish in Tunisia, a locality is described as
fvndvs villae magnae variani id est mappalia siga. 1 This name indicates that
the Roman town was placed on the site of a native mapalia called Siga. At Carthage
was a Via Mappaliensis in the time of St. Cyprian Martyr, 2 and as this street was distant
trom the centre of the town, it probably ran through, and derived its name from, an old
native suburb once occupied by booths. A parallel is seen in modern Tripoli Town,
where a long street, running south from the Kasbah, passes first among good houses,
then among poor and scattered ones, and at last goes through a settlement of wattled huts
inhabited by Fezzani blacks. The modern buildings, as was probably true of those of
the Carthaginian street, are slowly encroaching upon the quarter of the booths.
In form the mapalia doubtless varied according to the locality, and perhaps even
according to the fancy of the individual builders. Some of them looked like inverted
boats, 3 and were supported inside by stakes or poles driven into the ground. 4 These
could not have varied greatly from the Tripolitan booths mentioned above. Others
are described by St. Jerome as resembling ovens :
agrestes quulem casas et furnorum similes, quas Afri
appellant mapalia?
This seems to be the type represented in two
pastoral mosaics found at el-'Aliah in Tunisia. 6 The
mosaics show two Nile scenes, but the North African
artist has introduced into them pictures of huts which
are clearly mapalia" 1 The shelters are made of light
staves, topped with a wattled cone, which is curiously
elongated (Fig. 73)* A type somewhat different is
that represented in a mosaic of Udnah. In this picture
is seen a farm-house, beside which is a low thatched hut -
with a pent-house roof for the slaves, a style ol shelter
r J Fig. 73.
which there is no reason to think other than native. 9
Another thatched type 10 is shown on a sarcophagus now in the museum at
1 f. Toutain, Nouvelles Observations sur ^inscription d'Henchir Mettich, pp. 2, 7, 13.
" D. Ruinart, Acta Martyr, p. 218 ; C. Tissot, Geographic compares, vol. i. p. 661.
3 Those of the Numidians. Vide Sallust, Iugurtba xviii. i Livy xxx. 3. 5 S. Hieronymus, In pro/. Amos.
6 P. Gauckler, in Compt. Rend, de V Acad, des ///script., 1898, p. 828 sqq.
7 Jahrb. d. arch. Instit. vol. xv., 1900 ; Anzeiger, p. 67, fig. 2, p. 68, fig. 3.
s This elongation is exactly paralleled among the Niam Niams to-day ; cf. G. Schweinfurth, Artes Africa/me, pi. S,
figs. 1, 2, 3, 5, especially 5. The purpose of the elongation is to draw off the smoke. Ibid, text, in face of pi. xi. This
elongated type of hut is seen in a Ptolemaic representation of the Puntite shrine of Min. W. M. F. Pctrie, Athribis, pi.
xx. and text, p. 8.
9 Daremberg and Saglio, Dictionnaire, in verb. " Mappalia."
1,1 Gsell, Musee de Philippeville, p. 32 and pi. ii. ; cf. G. P. Campana, Opere plastiche, pi. cxiv.
170
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Philippeville (Fig. 74). This little structure has walls of wattle, and a conical roof
of thatch. 1 As a whole, the mapalia may be considered as divisible into two general
classes, within which accident and locality produced many variations : (a) the type
y// / /^ v.- ■•■'/■■ -, ' a \/ //.
Fie. 74.
Fig. 75.
of which Sallust speaks, and of which the modern Tripolitan booths are examples, and
(b) the type shown in Figs. 73 and 74. In the first type, an elongated ground-plan
is covered by a pent-roof or arched wattling, so as to suggest the shape of a cucumber
split lengthwise ; in the second, a circular area is enclosed by a wall of paling or
wattling, which is capped by a pointed roof. Small portable huts of both sorts are
found among the modern Berbers.'- 1
Besides dwelling in caves and movable huts or tents, the Eastern Libyans had
D
Fig. 76.
Fig. 76a.
permanent houses, at least in the oases. These, Herodotus 3 and Pliny 4 record, were
built of salt. This statement is only slightly misleading to-day, for the walls of Siwan
1 Probably the top of the door was not cut up into the thatch as shown. The reason why the hut is so repre-
sented on the sarcophagus may be simply to allow the sculptor to add to the height of the woman he shows standing in the
entrance. In fig. 74, although the female figure is purposely omitted, I have drawn the door as given (incorrectly ?) on the
monument. Huts, except for the door, like this mapalium are to-day common in Bornu, Borku, and Tibesti. For which
vide G. Nachtigal, Sahara und Sudan, passim ; and idem in the Tour du Monde, No. 14, 1880, pp. 379, 391, 405.
2 C. Tissot, op. cit. vol. i. p. 481 ; cf. p. 302 ; O. Meltzer, Gcsch. der Karth. vol. i. p. 70 sq.
3 Herodotus iv. 185.
4 Pliny v. 5, said of the Amantcs. Cf. ibid. xxxi. 7, for similar structures at Gerris in Arabia.
MATERIAL CULTURE AND ART i 7 i
houses, the beams of which are of palm-logs, are constructed of rubble mixed with
a hard mud-and-salt plaster. 1
It remains to say a word in regard to the cisterns and grain-stores of the Eastern
Libyans. At a very early period the Libyans must have built wells and cisterns,
as opposed to mere water-holes dug in the
sand. The Psylli, according to Herodotus, 2
stored their water in tanks ; and the great
number of wells and cisterns one encounters
in passing from Egypt to Tunisia, while
largely of Roman construction, had probably
in many instances an earlier origin. Grain-
stores are often found to-day, but, as with
wells, it is seldom possible to say of any one
of them that it is Greek, Roman, or Libyan ;
they are all simply square or bottle-shaped holes cut in the rock; like the modern
grain-stores of Malta. That grain-vaults were of frequent occurrence in Libya is
known from literary as from monumental sources. " It is the custom of the Africans,"
says the historian of Caesar's African War, " to place their grain privately in underground
vaults, to keep it safe in war-time and to protect it from sudden descents of the
enemy." 3 Figs. j$, J$a, 76, 76a, yj, jja give plan and section of a large cistern
in Mariut, a smaller on Seal Island (Gulf of Bombah) , and a grain-store at Marsa Suzah
(Apollonia) respectively.
1 G. Steindorf, Durch die Libysche Wiiste zur Amonsoase, figs. 28, 31, 34, 48, 54, 60, etc., give admirable illustrations of
this architecture, which, one may be sure, differs little, if at all, from that of ancient times.
2 Herodotus iv. 173. 3 Caesar, De bello Africano lxv.
CHAPTER VIII
RELIGION
The extant materials from which may be derived some knowledge of the religion of
the Eastern Libyans are in the pages which follow treated by a comparative method
which, were there more data, would be unnecessary. It should be further premised
that the comparative method employed has forced me to adopt a number of views which
have not, hitherto, been advanced elsewhere, and which, therefore, have not the
advantage of having been subjected to public criticism. In presenting the evidence, it
has been found best to do so under three heads : first, the animistic phases ; second,
eschatology ; third, theology. Detailed consideration of these topics will permit us
to conclude with a few remarks of a general nature.
The most primitive religious beliefs of the Eastern Libyans were of the simple
animistic sort common to all peoples in an unadvanced stage of development. Very
early in their career the world and its phenomena seemed to the savage inhabitant of
North Africa pregnant with spiritual forces. Wells, trees, hills, clouds, wind-storms,
etc., were each of them the abiding-place of spirits which gave to them their distinctive
characters. Long after such beliefs had given place to other and larger conceptions,
they themselves yet had a hold upon the popular mind, some of these animistic ideas
surviving in Eastern Libya even at the present time. This, for example, is seen in the
case of wells. At Siwah, the people yet believe firmly that the 'ayns in the oasis are
inhabited by spirits which have, under Islamic influence, come to be identified
with the Kuranic ginn. Sometimes these ginn emerge from their watery homes in
the shape of horses, goats, asses, or other animals. Bathing in Bir Ahmed, a well-
spring no longer in use for household purposes, is supposed to render women more
attractive, and is especially popular with widows and divorced women. Women bathe
weekly — generally now on Fridays — in 'Ayn el-Isgawah, 'Ayn el-Bahari, and especi-
ally in 'Ayn Musa (Tidt mta Musa) that they may be comely. In the last-named
well, which is a beautiful pool lined with Roman masonry, and about ten metres
across, boys bathe before circumcision ; and young women, before their marriage, there
172
RELIGION 173
bathe themselves carefully, the act being regarded almost as an essential part of the
marriage ceremony. 1
In the face of these modern survivals of primitive superstitions, it is not surprising
to find ancient indications of similar beliefs. In classical times the sacred Fountain of
the Sun at Ammonium (Siwah) attracted the notice of a number of writers, who
ascribed to it thermal qualities which it probably had, and capricious changes of colour
which it almost certainly lacked. 2 In the west, Roman dedications — genio flvminis, 3
genio fontis, 4 etc. — are numerous enough to suggest that, in those parts, native super-
stition was often attached to streams and springs. 5 Probably the splendid and beautiful
fountain at Cyrene, which in Greek times was dedicated to Apollo, 6 had already been
an object of reverence before the days of Hellenic colonization.
Stones of remarkable shape or size were, by a people to whom all natural objects
were instinct with a mysterious life, considered as having in them what, in modern
parlance, we might call " souls." Such a stone is that mentioned by Pliny, 7 on the
authority of Mela, 8 as being among the sacra at Ammonium. Were a man so bold as
to touch it with the hand, there arose straightway a strong sand-wind, violent and
harmful. In the west, this animistic conception of stones is yet seen in the case of an
aerolith in the Kasr of Tementit in Tuat. 9 If at Siwah a man stumbles against a stone,
and thereafter chance to fall ill, he is thought to have annoyed a ginni, and a ceremony of
conciliation to effect the invalid's recovery is gone through at the place of his misadventure.
Besides stones, hills also were revered by the Libyans in classical times. This,
naturally, was more particularly the case in the mountainous west 10 than in Eastern
Libya, but even in the latter region, hills were sometimes believed to have their
informing spirits. In the anonymous Arabic History of Siwah, one reads of a hill south
of Bahreyn, the ascent of which filled its discoverers with an oppressive and unreasoning
terror. 11 A striking analogy is offered by a passage of Pliny in regard to Mt. Atlas :
a religious fear, he writes, seizes on the hearts of those who draw near it, especially
at the sight of the summit upreared above the clouds, and which seems as if nigh to
the very moon. 12 The same feeling of awe at present attaches to the Idinen massif
1 C. V. Stanley, MS. Notes made at Siwah, 1910 ; O. Bates, MS. Journal at Siwah, 1910 ; idem, Siwan Super-
stitions, in CSJ, vol. /. no. 55, p. 90 sq.
2 Herodotus iv. 181 ; Diodorus Siculus xvii. 50; Arrian, Anabasis iii. 4; Q. Curtius iv. 7. 31 ; Pliny ii. 103,
v. 5 ; Mela i. 8 ; Ovid, Metamorph. xv. 309 sq. ; Lucretius, De rerum natura, v. 848 ; Vibius Sequester, p. 24 ;
Lactantius, ap. ibid. (Oberlin's notes) ; Antigonus Carystius, Mirabil. clix.
3 ciL. viii. 9749. 4 CIL. viii. 4291. 6 Cf. CIL. viii. 2662, 2663, 5884.
6 Cf. Callimachus, In Apoll. 88. 7 Pliny ii..4$. s Mela i. 8.
9 G. Rohlfs Reise durch Marokko, p. 14; Laquiere, Les Reconnaissances de General Serviere, p. 22 sq. with
photograph.
10 R. Basset, Recherckes sur la religion des Berberes, p. 1 sqq.
11 This MS. is a fragment of a longer work, now lost. The former owner of the book, Sheykh Omar Musellim, had
memorized the parts relating to Siwah, and at my request dictated those parts to Dr. Hasan Effendi Farid in 1910.
Captain Stanley and I thus obtained our copies. The work is of uncertain date, but was said to have been compiled
about a.h. 800 = fifteenth century a.d. It certainly, as redacted, has many recent additions.
12 Pliny v. 1 ; cf. Maximus Tyrius, Dissertationes viii. 7 ; Martianus Capella, De nuptiis philologiae, vi. p. 229 sq.,
edit. Eysennhardt.
174 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
north of Ghat, which the Azgar Imushagh (Tuareg) dare not penetrate. 1 Similarly,
Mount Udan is regarded with superstitious dread by the local Ihaggaren. 2
Mention is made above of a sacred stone noticed by Mela and Pliny. The terms
in which the former writer speaks of this object are such as to indicate not only an
animistic conception of unusual stones, but of the winds as well. The Roman geographer
says that at Ammonium there is "a certain stone sacred to the South Wind {Austro
sacra). When it is touched by the hand, straightway there arises a wind which,
hurling the sand about like water, rages as if over waves." 3 In conjunction with other
evidence, this passage shows that the Libyans had a belief in the spiritual nature of the
south wind — a belief so strongly rooted in the Berber mind that it has endured even
until modern times. 4
Classical readers will readily recall Herodotus's story 5 of the destruction of the
Psylli. According to the Greek historian, the tanks in which this people stored their
water were made dry by a long continued south wind. The Psylli thereupon determined
to go to war with this wind, " so at least," Herodotus cautiously remarks, " the Libyans
report." The Psylli marched into the desert, where a great wind arose from the south
and overwhelmed them in the sands. 6
In conjunction with this legend may be noted that of the expedition despatched by
Cambyses III. against Ammonium, as related by the same writer. It is only necessary
first to remark that such an expedition, directed against a great desert sanctuary, was,
according to Herodotean ethics, a thing recklessly impious, doomed from the outset
to be visited with divine displeasure. The Persians are said to have left Thebes and to
have reached the Great Oasis (Hargah) in safety. But thereafter, "naught is to be learned
of them, except what the Ammonians, and those who derive their knowledge from them,
report." The Persian army never reached Siwah, nor came again to Egypt, disaster
having overtaken them, according to the Ammonian story, at a point midway between
Hargah and the objective point. " As they were at their midday meal, a wind arose
from the south, strong and deadly, bringing with it vast columns of whirling sand,
which wholly covered the troops and caused them entirely to disappear — thus, according
to the Ammonians," concludes Herodotus, with a complacent sense of impiety avenged,
" did it fare with this army." 7
The former of these stories certainly, and the latter in all probability, is apocryphal.
The true story of the Psylli, as will be elsewhere pointed out, appears to be that they
were beaten back from the coast by the Nasamones, who seized their lands. As regards the
1 H. Barth, Reisen und Entdeckungen, etc., vol. i. p. 288 sqq. ; H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 416.
2 H. Duveyrier, loc. cit. ; M. Benhazera, Six mois chez, les Touaregs du Ahhagar, p. 60. 3 Mela, loc. cit.
4 What follows is based on O. Bates, A Desert God, in the CSJ, vol. iv. no. 51, p. 296 sq. I may here take
occasion to offer a long-delayed apology for the misprints in that article, which appeared while I was in the desert, out of
touch with the posts.
6 Repeated almost verbatim by A. Gellius, Nodes Atticae xvi. 11. 3.
6 Herodotus iv. 173. According to Nonnus [Dionysiaca, xiii. 381 sqq.) the expedition of the Psylli was made by
sea (!), and the ships were sunk by tempests from the south.
7 Herodotus iii. 25, 26.
RELIGION 175
expedition of Cambyses, it must be said that a sandstorm which would literally overwhelm
an army is a phenomenon outside all modern experience. Such a storm may have occurred,
but the likelihood is that, getting bewildered in an ordinary sandstorm, the Persian soldiers
became panic-stricken, killed their guides, or were deserted by them, and wandered about
until they were overcome by thirst. 1 But whatever the exact historical basis for these
tales, the points here to be observed are : (a) that in each of the above instances, Herodotus,
as so often happens, is repeating a native story ; and (b) that in one an affront against the
south wind, and in another an impious attempt upon a desert sanctuary, was supposed to
have been punished by the offenders being over-whelmed by sandstorms from the south.
A striking parallel exists to the story of Cambyses's army in the anonymous History
of Siwah. 2 According to the Arabic historian, the last pre-Islamic king of Santariah
(Siwah) despatched against the Moslemin who had invaded Egypt — again, be it observed,
an act which, from the writer's point of view was one of impiety — a great army. The
force consisted of " many thousands of men, who after leaving Bahreyn encountered a
very terrible wind two days south of that place, which killed nearly all of them."
Another passage from the same source deserves here to be cited. The historian
says that " certain of the Siwans relate that they visited Bahreyn, and there found a track
going south. . . . This they travelled for two days, and came then to a well-marked
road." Following this, they reached a place where "were the statues of four lions,
two facing to the north and two facing to the south. And these statues were black.
They spied then a hattiah, and a dark valley. . . . The Siwans sought to enter the
valley, but a great sand-wind withheld them. They became enfeebled, and returned
again to Bahreyn after much travail."
The primitive idea that the winds were informed with spirits has not died out of
Eastern Libya. To this day the Kibly (^Us), or South Wind, because of its power and
desert origin, is a thing universally dreaded by the caravaneers of North Africa, and is
regarded animistically. The dust column whirling along the edge of the cultivation in
Egypt is there still spoken of as a shaytan (J^) or " devil." The Arabs in Egypt
regard the abu zuba'ah (Lojj yl), or whirlwind, animistically, 3 believing that it is caused
by the flight of an evil ginni, to defend themselves against which they often cry out
" Iron ! Iron ! " or " Iron ! thou unlucky !." as the ginn are thought to have a great
dread of that metal. 4 As late as the middle of last century, a feud which was going on
between two Siwan factions was stopped because there arose a kibly > which the Lifayah,
one of the factions, regarded " as the unfailing signal of some calamity." 5 The Siwans
of to-day believe that the atmosphere is peopled with ginn, who, though " good," are
irritable and capricious.
1 Cf. for a modern parallel, S. W. Baker, The Nile Tributaries of Abyssinia, London, 1867, p. 12 sq.
2 Vide supra, p. 173 n. 11.
3 Dust-spirals were animistically conceived by the mediaeval Arabs, W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites, p. 1 34
and n. I.
4 E W Lane The Thousand and One Nights, vol. i. Notes to the Introauction, p. 34. Cf. idem, Manners and Customs
of the Modern Egyptians, p. 223. 5 J- Hamilton, Wanderings, p. 253.
176 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Further evidence on this head need not be cited ; enough has already been said to
give point to Maternus's remark that part of the inhabitants of Africa, like the
Assyrians, gave to the air a sort of domination over the other elements. 1 An animistic
view of atmospheric phenomena is one which is shared by many primitive peoples, 2 and
the question need not be further dwelt on.
That the rainbow and the mirage were both animistically regarded in Eastern Libya
seems proved by the way in which they are still viewed. The former is by some
Berber tribes of the west spoken of as the " bride of the rain," or " bride of the sky,"
and, like the latter, is regarded as having an informing spirit.
The primitive Libyan, living in a wonder-world of inspired stocks and stones, gave
to the heavenly bodies also their share of mysterious life. In later times, the anthropo-
morphism which grew out of the vague sentiments of the ruder stages of culture, led to
the actual worship of the stars, 4 and the doctrine of astral animation is seen surviving in
Berber legend to-day. 5 In Roman times the Africans in general were held to be good
astrologers : Septimius Severus, who was of African origin, was considered especially
adept in this art. 6 This is not extraordinary, when one considers the brilliancy and
magnificence of the stars as seen in the desert, or even in Egypt, where a host of
animistic beliefs attached at an early time to the " imperishable " stars. 7 The animistic
beliefs of the ancient Libyans, in fine, were such as might almost be argued for them a prion
from a knowledge of their climate and natural environment. In their main outlines they
differed but little, in so far as they are known, from those of the Semites of Arabia, or
those of the Hamites of East Africa.
It remains, in connection with the more primitive phases of Libyan religion, to say
something of taboos, magic, and manes-worship. The Libyan taboos known to-day
are but few. The Imushagh abstain, as has been said earlier in this essay, from eating
birds, fish, and lizards, 8 on the score that these animals are " their mother's brothers."
This reason at once suggests both that these taboos are totemic and matriarchal in their
1 Firmicus Maternus, De errore pro/an. relig. 3. He adds the later elaboration that the Afri consecrated the air to
Juno or to the Maiden Venus. Cf. GIL viii. 4635, and, perhaps, viii. 17763.
2 Cf. Homer, Odyss. passim ; J. E. Harrison, Prolegomena to the Study of Greek Religion, p. 176 sqq. (the Ktjp as
Wind-Daemon) ; G. W. Bateman, Zanzibar Tales, p. 68 ; R. N. Bain, Cossack Fairy Tales, p. 18 sqq. In the beautiful
Biblical passage in which Elijah has speech with God (1 Kings xix. 11) the divine voice is not in the fire, nor in the earth-
quake, nor in the whirlwind, because the writer of the passage was a protestant against current animistic views of these
natural phenomena. The reader is of course familiar with the personifications of Hellenistic art (Boreas, Notus,
Zephyrus, etc.), and with the Assyrian wind-daemons portrayed in the reliefs. s R. Basset, op, cit. p. 17.
4 Leo Africanus, Description of Africa, vol. i. lib. i. pp. 162, 177. I may here remark that the Libyan habit of reckon-
ing time by nights is not necessarily evidence of lunar observance. The authority for this practice is Nicolaus Damascenus
{Frag. ap. N. Cragium, De Republica Lacedaemoniorum, etc. p. 562), 01 No/idSes twv AiySiW, ov reus 17/xepcus, dAAa reus vv^lv,
avTu>v dpiOfiovm rbv XP° V0V - The use of "nights" here is paralleled by the "sleeps" of the Inuit and many modern
primitive people. 5 R. Basset, op. cit. p. 1 5 sqq. ; cf. H. Duveyrier, op. cit. p. 424 sqq.
6 Spartianus, Gha, 2 ; cf. Sidonius Apollinaris, viii. Epist. 11 (p. 528); Leo Africanus, op. cit. p. 177.
7 A. Erman, Handbook of Egyptian Religion, pp. 2, 7, 88, 91. For some classical notices on Egyptian star-cultus,
P. E. Jablonski, Pantheon Aegyptiorum, Part ii. p. 126 sqq. Libyan stellar observance is perhaps to be inferred from a
fragment of Lycus Rheginus, who remarks that African cattle, at the rising of Sirius, turn to face it. Lycus Rheginus,
Frag. 14 in FHG.
8 There are in North Africa several large edible lizards, like the " monitor."
RELIGION 177
origin. In these senses they have been repeatedly cited by various writers, but it has
not been taken into account that these taboos may all of them be of comparatively recent
origin among the Berbers. The bird, the fish, and the snake are all great totem-animals
in Nigeria ; but among the ancient Libyans we find some of the inhabitants of Syrtica
Regio who were fish-eaters, 1 as were the Libyan dynasts of the Egyptian Delta, 2 while
in the interior of Northern Africa, in ^Ethiopia Troglodytica, lizards were anciently
eaten. 3 The only taboo-animals of the Eastern Libyans, which are known certainly to
have been held as such, are the cow and the pig. According to Herodotus, the nomadic
Libyans abstained from eating cow's flesh out of respect for " Isis," this taboo obtaining
even among the Graecized women of Cyrene. 4 The women of Barca went further, and
abstained from the flesh of swine as well. 5
The dog may also have been a taboo-animal, whose flesh was eaten only for specific
reasons. For although the dog's flesh was exposed for sale in North African markets
during the Middle Ages, 6 its consumption is still associated with very strongly-marked and
widespread superstitions, which seem to descend from a time when the dog was a tabooed
animal, which was eaten only on ceremonial occasions. Thus, at Kabes, in the Nefzawah,
etc., dogs are eaten ; and near Tatahuin, part of the Megabelah tribe partake of dog's flesh
" when the date turns yellow, before becoming red," i.e. in the autumn. The dogs are
slain in an especial manner. The throat is cut, and the animal is then allowed to escape.
It runs a short distance and then falls, when it is taken up, singed, and then boiled. The
carcase is then drawn, and the head and feet are thrown away. 7 This ceremony is called,
according to Bertholon, a " sacrifice," and is one illustration of the formal cynophagy
practised to-day in North Africa. 8
In Tripolitana, dogs, as well as other animals forbidden by the Kuran, 9 are eaten as
medicines. At Siwah, dogs are eaten in privacy by syphilitics ; 10 people who wish to
grow fat eat the flesh of puppies. 11 A modern historian of Carthage has suggested that
African cynophagy was connected with the cult of the goddess Tanit : 12 it is more
probable, to judge from the extent and nature of the practice as revealed by recent ex-
ploration, that it is merely the survival of an ancient indigenous taboo.
A taboo of uncertain origin exists at Siwah with regard to garlic, which is eaten
but one week in the year — in the autumn — with a view to ensuring good health for the
ensuing twelvemonth. This custom can be referred only doubtfully to a Berber origin,
I Strabo xvii. 835. 2 BAR iv. § 882. 3 Mela i. 8.
* The cow-taboo was not universal in Libya. Cf. Herodotus ii. 18.
5 Herodotus iv. 186. The Libyan character of the Barceans persisted for centuries after the foundation of the city.
Cf. Polyaenus, Strateg. viii. 47.
6 El-Mokaddasi, p. 243 ; Sheykh et-Tigani, Voyage dans la Regence de Tunis ; el-Bekri, Description de F Afrique
septentrknak. Cf. Justin, Hist. Phil. xix. 1.
7 L. Bertholon, Essai sur la religion des Libyens, p. 4.2 sq. This essay contains one or two facts of value, such as this
just cited. 8 Idem, La Cynophagie dans F Afrique du Nord, for other instances.
9 G. F. Lyons, Narrative of Travels in Northern Africa, p. 52.
10 O. Bates, Siwan Superstitions, in the CSJ, vol. v. No. 55, p. 90.
II C. V. Stanley, MS. Notes made at Siwah, 1910. 12 F. C. Movers, Die Phonixier, vi. 405.
2 A
178 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
because a taboo of the same vegetable exists at Heybar in Arabia, 1 and as both at Siwah
and at Heybar there are many Sudanese blacks, it is perhaps they who are responsible
for the custom. Garlic and onions, moreover, held a peculiar position in ancient
Egyptian belief, 2 while it is pertinent to add that modern Moslem orthodoxy looks
with aversion upon this plant " which renders man's breath disagreeable to the angels."
To come now to the questions of divination and magic, it has been noted that in
Roman times the native Africans were reputed to be versed in astrology. Other forms
of divination were also in vogue, though information in regard to the details of the pro-
cesses is unhappily lacking. As in the rest of Africa, and, for the matter of that, as
among most of the primitive peoples of the world, the diviner was probably in most
cases a woman. 3 Procopius is speaking generally when he says that, among the Mauri,
it is the women, and not the men, who prophesy ; but that certain of their women,
having gone through the prescribed rites, become inspired so that they foretell the future
as skilfully as the ancient oracles. 4 In some cases, it is certain that the diviner sought
his or her foreknowledge at the grave of an ancestor or other worthy, as is commonly
done at the present time. At Augila, according to Mela, only the manes of the dead were
held to be divinities ; the people swore by them, and consulted them as oracles. The
grave was visited, the spirit invoked and told what was the wish of the votary, who then
slept at the spot and was answered in his dreams. 5 In this the Roman geographer is but
restating what had been said by Herodotus, not in regard to the Augilae only, but to all
the Nasamones. " For divination," remarks the Greek writer, " they betake themselves
to the graves of their own ancestors, and, after praying, lie down to sleep upon their
graves : by the dreams that come to them they guide their conduct." 6 This practice
exists among too many of the Berber tribes to-day to have been confined to the Nasa-
mones alone. Two cases may be cited. At el-Esnam, near Ghadames, women attire
themselves in their best garments, and go to certain graves known as those of the
Zabbar', where they call upon the spirit resident among the graves. This spirit is
called Idebni (cf. Adebni, "a grave"), and he appears in the form of a giant with eyes
like those of a camel. He answers such questions as are put to him concerning absent
husbands, etc. 7 The consultant, it should be added, must have upon her person no trace
of iron or steel. Again, near the Wady Augidit, in the northern Sahara, is a group
of great elliptical tombs. The Azgar woman, when desiring news of an absent husband,
1 C. M. Doughty, Wanderings in Arabia, vol. ii. p. 50.
2 Pliny says these vegetables were treated as gods by the Egyptians when taking an oath (Hist. Nat. xix. 6). Cf.
Juvenal, Sat. xv. 9. Garlic and onions were tabooed to the Egyptian priests (Plutarch, De hide et Osiride, § 8). Cf. the
classical practice of giving garlic as fodder to animals at the summer solstice to ensure their health through the ensuing
year. Vegetius, Mulomedicina i. 18. 18.
3 Mythic figures connected with magic and sorcery in Greek legend, it will be recalled, were more usually women
than men, as in the cases of Hecate, Selene, Circe, Medea, etc. Cf. E. Doutte, Magie et religion dans P Afrique du Nord,
pp. 33 sq. * Procopius, De bello Vandalico, ii. 8.
5 Mela i. 8, Augilae manes tantum deos putant, per eos deiurant, eos oracula consulunt precatique quae zwlunt, ubi tumults incubuere,
pro responds ferunt somnia. 6 Herodotus iv. 172. Cf. Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 209.
7 H. Duveyrier, Les Touareg du Nord, p. 415 ; M. Benhazera, Six mois chex les Touareg du Ahaggar, p. 63.
RELIGION 179
brother, or lover, goes to these graves and sleeps among them. She is thought to be sure to re-
ceive visions which will give her the news she seeks. 1 These examples of modern divination
at the graves of the dead throw an interesting light on the statements of Herodotus and Mela.
Magic, both " white " and " black," for the practice of which the Moghrebin are so
renowned throughout the Mohammadan world to-day, was anciently practised. A Libyan
custom mentioned by Nicolaus of Damascus affords an instance of sympathetic magic in
which a whole tribe participated. Certain Libyans, 2 according to this writer, held
annually a festival, which terminated, after the setting of the Pleiades, by the extinguish-
ing of the lights and a promiscuous sexual intercourse. 3 Such a custom is savage, but
cannot be described as depraved ; for it undoubtedly served a religious purpose, being in-
tended to ensure good crops and harvests.
A form of pledging faith noticed by Herodotus as a Nasamonian custom may here
be described, as it is really magical. Each party gave the other to drink from his
hand ; " and if there is no liquid to be had," adds Herodotus, " they take up dust from
the ground and put their tongues to it." 4 The purpose of this ceremony is perhaps
to infuse into each party something which is part of the other, and which will help
him to keep his pact, and work him ill, without hope of escape, if he violates it.
Magical rain-making was anciently known in Libya, 5 and the Kabyles, the Beni
Mzab, and others to-day preserve 6 remembrances of this in the chants they sing in times
of drought. In these, Anzar, the rain, figures as a personality :—
Anzar ! Anzar !
O God, moisten us even to the root ! 7
and
Give us, O God, the water of Anzar !
Magical, too, was the snake-charming for which in classical antiquity the Psylli
were famous. 8 The men 9 of this tribe, like the Marsi and the Ophiogenes, 10 were credited
with a marvellous power of charming serpents and curing their bites. The same
reputation is to-day enjoyed in Egypt by the Rifa'yah dervishes. The Psylli, like these
latter, were thought to cure venomous bites by saliva, 11 though it was believed that the
1 E. von Bary, Ghat et les Touareg de I' Air, p. 63.
2 Nicolaus calls them Aa^oAtySues, a name not found elsewhere. Ruperti, in his notes on Silius Italicus iii. 261, con-
jectured that for Aoii/'o- we should read Qaij/o-, and that the Libyans in question lived in the vicinity of Thapsus. I would
suggest that the true reading might be Aii/'oAi/Jues, applied as a descriptive to Libyans of the poorly watered interior.
3 Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 135 in FHG, Aa\poXl(3ve<; orav o-wa)(ttoo-t, n-avres apa yapovcrtv kv pit/. f)pip({- pera
Svcriv IIAaaSos, kcu pera ttjv ImLasriv \u>p\% twv yvvaiKwv KaraKeipivinv /caTa<j-/3eo-avT« Tbv Xvxvov aVepxovrai ko.1 6
rvxuv rjv o-v rvxy kapfiavci. Were these unions permanent ? If they were, we have here a primitive form of marriage.
4 Herodotus iv. 1 72. Cf. for the substitution of dust for water the Moslem use of sand for ceremonial ablutions in
the desert. The form of pledge described by Herodotus exists to-day in Algeria, where bride and groom so pledge them-
selves at marriage. T. Shaw, Travels in Barbary and the Levant, vol. i. p. 431.
6 Dio Cassius ix. 9. 6 E. Doutte, op. cit. pp. 584.-92. 7 Ben Sedira, Cours de langue kabyle, p. xcviii. n. 1.
8 [Amometus remarks {Frag. 3 in FHG) that there was in Libya a city the priests of which charmed crocodiles.
This is doubtful evidence on Libyan animal-magic, since Amometus probably refers to the Fayum, where the cult of
Socnopaeus, a form of Sebek, nourished in Graeco-Roman times. Cf. J. G. Milne, Egypt under Roman Rule, p. 129.]
9 The gift was not held by women. Zonaras, Annates, x. 31.
10 Crates Pergam. ap. Pliny vii. 2, xxviii. 3 ; Celsus v. 27.
11 Agatharchides ap. Pliny vii. 2 ; Callias, Frag. 3 in FHG^AeYim, Nat. anim. xvi. 28.
180 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
persons of the Psylli were in some mysterious way antipathetic to poisonous animals.
" In the bodies of these people," writes Pliny, " there was by nature a certain kind of
poison which was fatal to serpents, and the odour of which overpowered them with
torpor : with them it was a custom to expose children immediately after birth to the
fiercest serpents, and in this manner to make proof of the fidelity of their wives, 1 the
serpents not being repelled by such children as were illegitimate."" Pliny, here as
usually the uncritical compiler, has narrated in this account the Greek explanations of
the pretended immunity of the Psylli rather than the details of the process by which
they were supposed to have effected it. His indication as to the use of saliva, given
on the authority of Agatharchides, and confirmed by the historian Callias, suffices to
show the magical character of the methods by which the Psylli " charmed " venomous
snakes. In classical times, the Psylli were employed as doctors to " charm " snake-bites
and scorpion-stings, 3 perhaps the most famous occasion on which their services were
requisitioned being one where their powers proved of no avail — for Octavius endeavoured
vainly to restore Cleopatra to life by the arts of these serpent-masters. 4 The process by
which the Psylli effected such cures as they actually made, and by which they attained
their great reputation, is explicitly described by Callias. The bite of the cerastes, he says,
is fatal to men and animals unless a man of the Psylli be present to effect a cure. A mild
case the Psyllus cured by spitting into the wound ; a graver wound he treated by rinsing
his mouth in water, which he then gave the patient in a cup to drink ; and if, even after
this " medicine," the symptoms grew worse, he and the victim stripped and lay close
together until, by the peculiar power within him, he had defeated the effects of the
poison. 5 In all this one sees clearly an old and respectable piece of tribal magic ; later,
the charming seems, as not infrequently happens, to have degenerated into a mere catch-
penny trade. Pliny speaks of having himself seen " exhibitions " in which the Psylli
went through some sorry jugglery with toads {rubetae) which the performers irritated
by placing on flat vessels heated to redness, after which abominable treatment the bite
of the rubeta, so Pliny solemnly declares, was deadlier than even that of an asp. 6
" Black " magic existed in Eastern Libya anciently as to-day. Belief in the evil
eye, at present universal in North Africa, is strongly rooted at Siwah ; and as the
1 Cf. Lucan, Pharsalia, ix. 890 sqq. ; Aelian, Hist. anim. i. 57, vi. 33, xvi. 27, 28. 2 Pliny, loc. cit.
3 Pliny xi. 25. Pliny there makes the weird statement that the Psylli — "who for their own profit have been in the
habit of importing the poisons of other lands among us" — tried to introduce a flying scorpion, which, however, could not
stand the climate north of Sicily.
4 Dio Cassias li. 14 ; Zonaras, Annales, x. 31. Psylli also attended the army of Cato on its march across the Syrtica
Regio. Lucan ix. 891 sqq. ; Plutarch, Cato Minor, § 56.
5 Callias, loc. cit. ; cf. Zonaras, loc. cit. Lucan ix. 925 ; Pliny xxviii. 3.
6 Pliny xxv. 10. Was the serpent the Psyllic totem ? W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites, p. 445, cited [Aristotle]
(Mirab. auscult. § 149 sq.) to the effect that in the Euphrates Valley was a certain small snake fatal to foreigners, but
harmless to the natives : whence Smith inferred this snake to have been the local totem. Were this inference correct,
a similar one would apply to the Psylli, of whom the same tale is told (Antigonus Carystius, Mirabil. xix.), and who were
even said to establish the legitimacy of their children by testing their immunity from the poison of asps. But the Psylli
were thought to be immune to all venomous animals, and these tales strike me as mere idle boasts such as Europeans still
encounter in the Levant. Therefore I hesitate to do more than suggest that the totem of the Psylli was a serpent.
RELIGION 181
manifestations of this superstition there are not identical with those of Egypt, it is fairly
safe to assume that the present survivals have descended not only from Arabic, but also
from Berber antiquity. It is known, moreover, on the authority of two Greek writers
cited by Pliny, that in Africa were " certain families of enchanters {familias quasdam
effascinantium) who by means of praise (laudatione) could cause cattle to perish, trees to
wither, and infants to die." a
The custom of divination at graves has been spoken of; and the other features of Libyan
manes-worship may now be considered. In all Africa the cultus of the dead has for ages
had a hold extremely strong. 2 In the northern portion of the continent it was developed
in Egypt to proportions so enormous as to affect profoundly the whole life of the Nile
populations for thousands of years. Among the Berbers it was highly developed ; and traces
of it survive from the Red Sea to the Atlantic up to the present time. It will be con-
venient to consider this phase of Libyan religion under the headings of Burial and Cultus.
Burial. — " The nomadic Libyans," says Herodotus, " with the exception of the
Nasamones, bury their dead as do the Greeks." 3 Greek burials were usually dia-
magnetic — i.e. the body lay extended in an E.-W. or W.-E. direction i — Athenian custom
inclining rather to a position in which the head was toward the west. The Nasamones
buried their dead in a sitting posture, a dying man being carefully supported by his
friends in the proper position. 5 Further information is supplied by Silius Italicus, whose
De bello Punico contains a remarkable passage on burial custom, which the pedantic poet
must have derived from some rather detailed source. From Silius it is learned that
not only did the Nasamones bury their dead as Herodotus relates, but that they also
disposed of them in the sea : —
. . . Saevo sepelire profundi)
Exanimos mandant Libycis Nasamones in oris. 6
The same author speaks of the Garamantes as burying their dead in shallow sand-pits : —
. . . reclusa nudos Garamantes harena
Infodiunt}
Burial under mounds was also known : Mela, speaking of Libyan graves, called them
tumuli* and it is told that the Emperor Probus, having when an officer engaged the
Libyan Aradion in single combat, and slain him, caused the soldiers to raise over him a
great barrow. 9 Classical readers will readily recall the mention of the barrows of the
Philaeni in the east, and the gigantic grave of Antaeus opened by Sertorius in the west.
1 Isogonus and Nymphodorus ap. Pliny vii. 2. Cf. A. Gellius, Ncct. Att. ix. 4, . . . in terra Africa familias hominum
voce atque lingua effascinantium ... 2 E. B. Tylor, Primitive Culture, vol. ii. p. 115.
3 Herodotus iv. 190, 66,-ktovo-i 8e tov<s aTrodvrjo-KOVTas ol j/o/xaSes koto wep ol "EAAtjveSj TrXrjv Nao-a/xwvwv.
4 Cf. Aelian, Var. hist. v. 14, vii. 19 ; Plutarch, Solon, 10 ; Diogenes Laertius, Solon. See too Welcker, Griechische
Gotterlehre, vol. i. p. 404.
5 Herodotus, loc. cit., oSrot 6e KaTijfievovs OdirTovcrt,, <£vAacro-ovTes, oredv dirifj ttjv <pvxijv, okids jxiv Karurova-i ^Se
vtttios airodavierat ; Eustathius, ad Dionys. Perieg. 209, . . . Kadrjpevovs 8e, <t>a<ri, OaTrrovo-i [scil. ol Ndo-a/wes] tow veKpovs.
6 Silius Italicus, De bello Punico, xiii. 480 sq. 7 Ibid. xiii. 479. 8 Mela i. 8.
9 Vopiscus Probus 9, . . . et quia fortissimum ac pertinacissimum virum viderat, sepulchre ingenti honoravit, quod adhuc extat
tumulo usque ad ducentos pedes terra elatum per milites, quos otiosos esse numquam est passus. The raising of this barrow was, how-
ever, probably as much a concession to Libyan prejudice, as a task to busy the soldiers, or a memorial to Aradion's valour.
1 8z THE EASTERN LIBYANS
It is to be noted that, while the Libyans practised different forms of interment, they
seem all to have used forms of inhumation as opposed to incineration. 1 The modes
which are recorded are — (a) extended diamagnetic burial, (b) sea-burial, (c) contracted
burial in a sitting posture, and (d) burials under a memorial mound. 2
{a) The extended burials which Herodotus noted as usual were probably practised
by the Hellenized Libyans best known to the Cyreneans. 3 No sooner are the Nasamones
reached than Herodotus notices a different custom, and beyond that people he must, on a
point like this, have been ill-informed.
(£>) The sea-burials of the Nasamones, if they really took place — and there is little
reason to doubt it — may have been of fairly late origin, and been due either to the
fact that among the Nasamones were the survivals of customs belonging to an invading
sea-people, or to a feeling that to the sea from which they obtained so much, the bodies
of the dead should be committed.
(c) Contracted burials are common to divers primitive peoples. The Winnebagos,
for example, buried their dead sitting, as did the Peruvians and the Yumanas of South
America. 4 The predynastic Egyptians had the same custom, and in Roman times — an
excellent illustration of the fact that the practice had not a chronological, but merely
a cultural, significance — the " X-Group " people of Nubia also buried their dead in a
contracted position. In Borghu (Benin) " when a man dies a pit is dug . . . and the
body is placed in a sitting posture, with the hands and feet tied tightly with a cord, and
the head inclining upward." 5 From this it may be seen that the practice of contracted
burial is not peculiar to Africa, and that within that continent it is widespread.
There are, of course, different degrees of contraction, and different positions — e.g.
lying on the side or sitting. Both the postures mentioned were known in Egypt, but it
was the sitting one which was in favour with the Libyans. Its employment, or rather
1 The only case of Libyan incineration for which there is any ancient authority is in Silius Italicus' account (De
bells Punico, ii. 263 sqq.) of the funeral of Asbyte. As that description does not agree with his pedantic but more sober
account of burial customs in his xiii. book, nor with the other evidence, and as it is written in a vein picturesque and
poetical, it may be dismissed as figmentary.
2 I do not believe, as by inference from the Balearic custom many appear to, that any form of " dissected burial " was
common to the Libyans as a whole. I know only one ancient source for anything of this sort in Africa. Nicolaus of
Damascus [Frag. 141 in FHG) states that the Panebi (Hav-qfloC) Libyans, a tribe of whom even the location is unknown,
buried their kings after first cutting ofF the head of the corpse. The head was gilded and placed iv Upoi — among the
tribal sacra. But the ILdvTjfUoL Ai/3ves may not have been Libyans at all, except by an error of Nicolaus or his copyist.
For the practice is explicitly described by Herodotus (iv. 26) as existing among the Issedonians, and by Livy (xxiii. 24) as
existing among the Boii of Gaul. May not the Boii have been here confused with the Byaei Libyans ?
3 The numerous rock-cut shaft-graves of the western part of Cyrenaica may have been made under Libyan influence.
For these the reader is referred to G. Dennis, Excavations . . . in the Cyrenaica, in Trans. Roy. Soc. Lit. II. Series, IX.
(1870), pp. 147, 153, 161 sq. Skeletal remains of horses were found in some of the graves. Ibid. p. 163.
4 E. B. Tylor, op. cit. vol. ii. 422 sqq.
5 R. Lander, Records of Captain Clapperton's Last Expedition to Africa, vol. ii. p. 139. Cf. H. K. W. Kumm, From
Hausaland to Egypt, p. 106, where a burial at Joko, in the Shari-Chad Protectorate, is described. In that case the grave
was dug in the centre of the deceased's hut. "Fowls were sacrificed, and . . . the body, tied up into a sitting posture,
was lowered into the hole, which was then filled with earth and the hut deserted." For similar burials among the Bari,
G. Casati, Ten Years in Equatoria, vol. i. p. 303, and A. J. M. Jephson, Emin Pasha and the Rebellion at the Equator, p. 140.
Jephson notes that the sitting corpse has sometimes a hide put over it, and under it.
RELIGION 183
the care with which the friends of the dying man helped him to conform to it, is
significant. Such ritualism with regard to the act of dying points to the strength among
the Libyans of their belief in after-life. There is no evidence as yet as to whether their
belief favoured a " retribution theory " of the hereafter, the information we possess
pointing merely to the existence of a "continuance theory."
(d) In the tumulus is an example of the manner in which the burials were marked.
Nomadic graves of Roman date examined at Gerbah, 1 near Siwah, consisted of a rough
cist of small flat stones, in which the body, wrapped in coarse cloth, lay extended. Over
and about the cist were piled flat stones to a height originally, perhaps, of about 50 cms.
At Seal Island, in the Gulf of Bombah, exist a number of enclosures of small stones,
generally circular or elliptical in plan. The presence of small offering niches, usually
on the S. W. side of these structures, shows them to have been grave enclosures ; but it is
not possible to say definitely what age is to be assigned to them. Cairns of rectangular
ground-plan, with battering sides, exist near Germah, where they were seen by Duveyrier. 2
Cultus. — As at the present time throughout North Africa and the Sudan, offerings
were probably made at graves at the time of interment, and replaced from time to time
with fresh ones in the case of a notable personage. The Eastern Libyans had a long
memory for their famous dead, as have the modern Arabs for their departed sheykhs.
Out of this reverence grew naturally the habit of apotheosizing deceased chieftains, who
even in their lifetime were probably credited with spiritual powers which differentiated
them from other men. This is seen clearly in the west, as in the case of Juba, whose
position is explicitly defined in the curt phrase, Et Iuba, Mauris volentibus, deus est. 3
In Eastern Libya there stood upon the Syrtic shore a tomb which in the time of Pliny
was thought to be that of the eponymous chieftain called " Psyllus," 4 which, one may
be sure, was an object of native reverence. The same applies to the famous tomb and
altar of the Philaeni at the bottom of the Syrtis Major, though the heroic brothers fabled
to have been, buried there were, if they ever existed, Carthaginians. 5 In short, the
general attitude of the Eastern Libyans toward their dead was markedly religious.
This is confirmed not only to the practice of divination at graves, referred to
above, but to the habit of swearing by the dead. Herodotus relates of the Nasamones
that among them a man taking an oath " lays his hand upon the tomb of someone
considered to have been pre-eminently just and good, and so doing, swears by his name." 6
1 Personal observation. 2 H. Duveyrier, Les Touting du Nord, pi. xv. fig. z (facing p. 279).
3 Minucius Felix, Octavius, 23; Lactantius, De falsa religione, xv. Cf. CIL, viii. 17, 159, and Tertullian, Afolog. 24,
unicuique etiam provinciae et civitati suus deus est, ut Syriae Astartes, . . . ut Mauretaniae reguli sui. Lactantius, loc. cit., . . . Romani
Caesares suos consecraverunt, et Mauri reges suos . . . ; S. Cyprianus, De idolorum vanitate, p. 225, . . . Mauri vero manifeste
reges colunt, nee ullo velamento hoc nomen obtexunt. This cult of princes was perhaps encouraged by Roman apotheosis of
Emperors, but its origin in North Africa, as in Egypt, was unquestionably indigenous. R. Basset, op. cit. p. 24 sq.
4 Pliny vii. 2.
6 Sallust, Iugurtha lxxv. ; Strabo iii. 171 ; xvii. 836 ; Valerius Maximus v. 6, Ext. 4 ; Mela i. 7 ; Pliny v. 4.
6 Herodotus iv. 172, Mela i. 8, Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 209. It is, of course, mere rhetorical depreciation
which made Procopius {De bello Vandalico, ii. 8) declare that the Mauri were ignorant of oaths .... otti yap iv Mavpovo-iois
ovre Oelov <pof3os ovre a.vQpwmv alStos. ptkti yap avrols ovtc opKwv ovre o/i^pwv, ktX.
1 84 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
The custom of swearing at tombs of pious persons is universal in Mohammadan Africa.
In Kordofan, for example, as a recent writer has remarked, tombs " were the favourite
spots ... for the swearing of solemn oaths, and should such an oath prove false, dread
consequences were expected." 1 It was just such a sentiment which led to the swearing
of oaths at graves among the ancient Libyans ; and the practice is proof of the strongest
kind of the existence of a belief in a future life. 2
To pass now from the animistic phases to the more developed aspects of Libyan
religion, it will be best to consider first the different divinities with whom we are
acquainted under separate forms.
Ash
A Libyan god of this name (^\ rzszi) is mentioned as early as the Vth Dynasty
on the reliefs of King Sa-hu-re. 3 The name also occurs on some jar-sealings of about the
same time. 4 From the manner in which he appears in the Sa-hu-re reliefs, it may be
conjectured that this god was of some prominence in Eastern Libya at the time of the
Old Empire ; but nothing further can be said in regard to his nature and functions.
Shaheded
In composition with several personal names found in Late New Empire stelae
in the Egyptian Delta, has been noted the element TiTtl FD or TtTtT [H s]htt or
slhdd. The stelae appear to have commemorated certain Libyan settlers in the Delta,
and it has been suspected that the iV^-names are theophorous. An attempt has even
been made to show that Shaheded was a Libyan goddess, but until further evidence has
been collected on this point it cannot be regarded as having been satisfactorily established. 5
One need not, however, doubt that the element }]htt or s]hdd is Libyan, for it seems to
be preserved in a bilingual Libyco-Latin inscription of the west. The Latin text in
question reads sactvt ihimir p vixit annorvm lxx ; the Libyan equivalent of sactvt
reads sktt, which bears an unmistakable resemblance to the hieroglyphic form fi/itt. 6
SlNIFERE
A god of this name is mentioned by Corippus in the Johannis 7 as being worshipped
by the Eastern Libyans. As far as can be discerned he was a war-god, but only, perhaps,
in the sense that he was a tribal god who helped his followers in war as in peace.
1 R. G. Anderson, Medical Practices and Superstitions of Kordofan, p. 292.
2 R. Neumann, Nordafrika . . . nach Herodot, does not exaggerate when he says (p. 139) that this belief 1st bei
alien Hamiten Nordafrikas vom Nil bis zu den Kanarien angetroffen warden. In this connection two late Roman inscriptions at
Ghirzah are noteworthy. These tributes of children to the memory of their parents terminate with the curious wish that
the deceased — by their names clearly natives — may revisit their children's descendants and " make them like themselves " :
visitent filios et nepotes meos et tales facient. Denham, Oudney, and Clapperton, Travels, etc., vol. ii. p. 127 sag.
(especially p. 130, note, and p. 131, inscription no. 2).
3 L. Borchardt, Das Grabdenkmal des Konigs S'alhu-Re', vol. i. p. 17.
4 J. E. Quibell, Cairo Catal. Archaic Objects, Plates, p. 8, No. 178, 179 ; p. 9, No. 200.
8 A. Wiedemann, Stelae of Libyan Origin, p. 227.
6 For the bilingual inscription, V. Reboud, Recueil d' 'inscriptions libyco-berberes, pi. iv. No. 24, text, p. 36.
7 Corippus, Johannis, iv. 681 ; J. Partsch, Die Berbern in der Dichtung des Corippus, p. 16.
RELIGION 185
Mastiman
From Corippus one learns of a divinity of this name, who, like Sinifere, appears in
the Johannis 1 as a war-god, 2 but whose exact nature is obscure. He is thus referred
to by Corippus :
. . . Maurorum hoc nomine gentes
Taenarium dixere Iovem, cui sanguine multo
Humani generis mactatur victima pesti?
Partsch, from this gloomy characterisation, was inclined to relate Mastiman to the Dis
Severus of an African inscription, 4 and to emend Taenarium to Tartareum. 5
The name Mastiman is certainly connected with, and may be the equivalent of,
that of a divinity called Autiman in a Latin inscription, where the latter god is associated
with Mercurius. 6
[" APTUCHUS " AND " BALEUS "
A place near Apollonia Ptolemy names 'Ktttovxov Upov. 7 C. Miiller conjectured that
the reading should be Avtovxov, but in Christian Africa there were bishops styled
Abtungemis, Aptungensis, or Aptuncensis ? This suggests that ' ' k^-roi^pv may be correct,
and that in Cyrenaica there may have been a native cult of a god of this name.
Near Cyrene lay a town called BaXt? — airo t^o? Ba\ea<;, ov km, lepbv %t 9 — otherwise
known as <& a \dicpa, w BaX&ypat,, 11 or Balacris. 12 In these latter forms it is easy to recognize
derivatives of the Semitic p^-Ss?, 13 ba'al-keren, recalling the locative epithet Balcarensis
of the Afro-Punic "Saturnus." 14 Pausanias states that at Balagrae Aesculapius was
worshipped under the title of Physician, 'larpos ; 15 the Tabula Peutingeriana glosses
Balacris with the words Hoc est templum Asclepii. The inference is that here, under
Semitic influence, was established the worship of Ba al Eshmun, the Baleus of Stephanus,
whom classical writers identified with Aesculapius.]
The Sea-Gods
According to Herodotus, the Greeks obtained their knowledge of " Poseidon "
" from the Libyans, by whom he has always been honoured, and who were anciently
the only people who had a god of that name." 16 This remarkable statement indicates
clearly that some sort of a sea-god, of general character, was in fairly high repute among
the coastwise Libyans of the fifth century b.c. The cult of " Poseidon " was especially
practised about Lake Tritonis. 17 It is impossible to say whether this deity was originally
I Corippus, 'Johannis iv. 682, vii. 307. 2 G. Mercier, Les Divinit'es libyques, p. 1.
3 Corippus, Johannis vii. 307 sqq. 4 GIL, viii. 9018.
6 J. Partsch, loc. cit. 6 CIL, viii. 2650.
7 Ptolemy iv. 4 § 3. s S. A. Morcelli, Africa Christiana, vol. i. p. 34 sqq.
9 Stephanus Byz. in verb. BaAts. 10 Ptolemy iv. 4 § 7. All MSS.
II Pausanias ii. 26. 9 ; cf. Synesius, Epist. 104, 131. 12 Tab. Peut. Segm. viii.
13 ]-ip. from *H5, primary syllable np, Gesenius, Lexicon, p. 943. u J. Toutain, De Saturni . . . cultu, p. 32.
15 Pausanias, he. cit. Pausanias says the cult at Balagrae was derived from Epidaurus, but notes that goats were
offered at the former sanctuary, contrary to usual Greek practice. ie Herodotus ii. 80.
17 Ibid. iv. 188. Cf. R. Neumann, Nordafrika . . . nach Herodot, pp. 136 sq.
2 B
1 86 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
a Libyan one, or was a god imported by the Sea-Peoples who were allied with the
Libyans in their invasions of Egypt.
The Libyans about Lake Tritonis also venerated a god called " Triton " by
Herodotus. 1 In Argonautic legend this divinity is represented as having piloted the
storm-driven Jason through the shoals of Lake Tritonis, for the sake of a brazen tripod.
The god then " took the tripod," carried it to his own temple, seated himself upon it,
and " filled with prophetic fury, delivered to Jason a long prediction," saying that a
hundred Greek cities would rise about Lake Tritonis when a descendant of one of the
Argonauts should carry off the tripod. " The Libyans of that region," adds Herodotus,
"when they heard the words of the prophecy, took away the tripod and hid it."
With regard to this legend, it may be remarked that, whereas the Libyan " Poseidon "
appears to have been a sea-god of a general nature, "Triton " would seem to have been
a local divinity whose activities were confined to a narrower sphere.
Connected with " Tritdn " was his female counterpart " Tritonis," who bore
" Athena," presently to be spoken of at length, to Poseidon. 3
["Achor"
An old error, promulgated over two centuries ago, and apparently unchallenged to
the present time, would establish a deity of this name in the Libyan pantheon. Selden,
in his De diis Syrisf cites Pliny x. 40 (28) as follows : Cyreniaci Achorem deum
\invocant\ muscarum multitudine pestilentiam afferente, quae protinus intereunt postquam litatum
est illi deo ; and he then refers " Achor " to the place-name " Accaron," and relates the
god to Ba'al-Zebub, the deus Accaronitarum, etc., as a ©eo? Mvla like the Greek Myiagrus,
Zeus Apomyius, Apollo Myoctonus, etc. I am ignorant as to the edition of Pliny used
by Seldon, but the texts of Detlefson, Sillig, and Franz, and even that of Erasmus
(Basle, 1539), regularly give "Elei" for "Cyreniaci," and "Myiagron" for "Achorum."
"Achor" is clearly derived from a corrupt lection of "Myiagron," but how "Elei"
became Seldon's " Cyreniaci " I am at a loss to say. The point is only worth noting
because " Achor," were this the true lection, would certainly have to be regarded as a
non-Greek, and consequently as a Semitic or a Libyan, divinity.]
["Psaphon"
Maximus Tyrius relates 5 that a certain Libyan named Psaphon, aspiring to divine
honours, collected a great number of song-birds which he taught to utter the words " the
great god psaphon." The birds, having learned their lesson, were set free, and repeated
in their native woods the cry they had been taught in captivity. Thereupon the
simple Libyans, thinking that the voices were divinely inspired, sacrificed to Psaphon.
It is barely possible that a god of this name really was venerated in some part of
1 Herodotus iv. 1 88. 2 Ibid. iv. 179 ; cf. 178.
8 Ibid. iv. 180. For the Greek conception of Triton, Tritonis, and Athena Tritogenis, vide Vater, Triton und
Euphemos, passim ; J. Eschcr, Triton und seine Bek'dmpfung durch Herakks, passim.
4 J. Selden, De diis Syris, p. 304. 5 Maximus Tyrius, Dissertat. xix.
RELIGION 187
North Africa, and that the tale preserved by Maximus is merely a late attempt at
explaining the origin of the cultus. Other evidence on this point is, however, lacking.]
The Sun-God
Among the tattoo -marks seen on the Libyans represented on the Egyptian
monuments occur some which, as has already been said, had a religious significance.
To these are to be added, without lapsing into that extravagance which sees sun-symbols
in everything, the cruciform devices shown in Fig. 52, which yet survive among the
Berbers. Sun-cultus, to which these emblems seem to be related, was strongly developed
among the Libyans in general, Herodotus remarking that all the Libyans sacrificed
to Sun and Moon. 1 The manner of sacrifice he thus describes : " The rites which the
wandering Libyans use . . . are the following. They begin with the ear of the victim,
which they cut off, and throw over their dwellings ; this done, they kill the animal by
twisting the neck. 2 They sacrifice to sun and moon, but not to any other gods. This
worship is common to all the Libyans. The inhabitants of the parts about Lake
Tritonis worship in addition Triton, Poseidon, and Athena, especially the last." 3
This evidence as to the importance of sun-worship in ancient Libya receives confirma-
tion from other sources. In the west have been found numerous non-Mithraic inscriptions
bearing the formulae soli deo invicto, 4 soli deo avgvsto, 5 soli invicto, 6 or dedicated
to sun and moon together. 7 At Ammonium (Siwah) was a fountain sacred to the sun. 8
A Libyan Helius is mentioned by Diodorus ; 9 Ibn Haldun states that in early times the
Berbers in general adored the sun ; 10 a late writer, who conceived Apollo as primarily a
sun-god, mentions that there was an Apollo Ammonis Jilius in Libya natus ; n Macrobius
declares that under the name of Hammon the Libyans worshipped the declining sun, 12 etc.
The only name now known for the Libyan sun-god — for that he was only called
" Hammon " by confusion will later appear — is that preserved by Corippus, who mentions
him as Gurzil. 13 In the Johannis this god appears as a divinity in high favour with
the tribesmen. His priest Ierna fights conspicuously in battle, 14 and an image of
the god is borne by the Libyans into the fray. 15 He is represented as the offspring
of the prophetic 16 god of Siwah, the ram-horned divinity who, for reasons which will
presently be made clear, was widely identified in late times with the Egyptian Amon.
1 Herodotus iv. 1 88. He has previously excepted the Atarantes of the west, by saying that they cursed the sun for
its wasting heat (iv. 184). Cf. Mela i. 8 ; Pliny v. 8 ; Nicolaus Damascenus, Frag. 140 in FHG.
2 W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites, p. 431, has misquoted this passage of Herodotus. "The Libyans," he writes,
"killed their sacrifices without bloodshed, by throwing them over their huts and then twisting their necks" [!].
3 Herodotus, he. cit. 4 CIL, viii. 2675. 6 CIL, viii. 4513.
6 CIL, viii. 1329, 1543, 9331, 9629. 7 CIL, viii. 14,688, 14,689.
8 Herodotus iv. 181 ; Diodorus Siculus xvii. 50 ; Arrian, Anabasis, iii. 4 ; Curtius iv. 7. 31 ; Pliny ii. 103, v. 5, etc.
9 Diodorus Siculus iii. 57. 4, 5 et alibi. 10 Ibn Haldun, Kitab el- Ibar, vol. vi. p. 89.
11 L. Ampelius, Liber memorialis, 9 (p. 21) ; cf. Corippus, Johannis, iii. 81 sqq.
12 Macrobius, Saturnalia, i. 21. Cf. Martianus Capella, De nuptiis Philologiae, ii. p. 44.
13 Corippus, op. cit. ii. 109, 405, iv. 665, 683, 1 1 39 sqq., v. 116, vii. 304, 619 ; J. Partsch, he. cit.
14 Corippus, op. cit. ii. 109, iv. 631, 1013, 1 138, etc.
16 Ibid. iv. 669 sqq., 1 139 sq. For Semitic parallels see W. R. Smith, op. cit. p. 36 sq.
16 Ibid. vi. 516, fatidicus.
1.88 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Huic [Gurzil] referunt gentes pater est quod corniger Amnion
Bucula torva -parens. . . }
His form was that of a bull. 2 The sun as a divine bull is, of course, a natural
conception, from the power and splendour of the luminary on the one hand, and the
strength and beauty of the animal on the other. A parallel exists in the case of
Mnevis of Heliopolis in Egypt, where the sun-bull was held in high honour. 3
A head which would seem to be that of Gurzil is seen upon the discus of a
Roman lamp of the first century a.d. in one of the African museums ; 4 a rudely-
sculptured head, found at el-Kenayssiah, represents the Amon-Gurzil type, having both
the bull's horns of the sun-god and the ram's horns of the god of the Oasis. 5
The cult of Gurzil seems long to have survived in Eastern Libya. El-Bekri,
writing in the eleventh century a.d., mentions that various tribes in Tripolitana — among
others the Huarah — to secure protection for their herds, offered prayers to a stone idol
placed upon a hill-top, and named Gurza. 6 The situation of the idol, the purpose of
their prayers, and the strong resemblance of names, leave little doubt that this is the
Gurzil of Corippus. The name of the god appears in several place-names of classical
times, such as the Roman civitas Gurzensis? the Gurza of Ptolemy, 8 etc.
Little as is actually known of the sun-god Gurzil, his mythical origin, his general
character, and his popularity are easily discernible from the evidence. He was a god
whose origin had place in the direct personal nature-worship of early times, and so
may be likened to the Greek Helius. His appearance in war was perhaps due to his
being regarded as a protector and a dark-dispeller — a god who, like the Apollo with
whom he was by some identified, was e/cr)(36\o<; or e«aT?7/3oXo?. When he was invoked
as the protector of herds, it was as a bull-god, who, naturally, had come to be regarded
as the patron of kine. 9
The Moon-God
The one divinity which, besides the sun, was, according to Herodotus, worshipped by
all the Libyans, was the moon. 10 In Berber, the word is a masculine substantive : aggur, or
aiyur. This, as was pointed out by Merrier, 11 suggests the name Ieru, which occurs as a
divine name, linked with the epithet augustus, in an inscription found near Constantine.
1 Corippus ii. no sq. 2 j^j m iv _ 666 J?
3 Ammianus Marcellinus xxii. 245 ; Aelian, Hist. mint. xi. 11 ; Macrobius, Saturnalia, i. 21 ; Porphyrius ap. Eusebius
Praepar. Evang. iii. 13. For Apis, the Memphite bull-god who was sometimes regarded as a solar deity, see Macrobius,
he. cit. and cf. [Lucian], De astrologia, § 7. 4 Catal. Musee Lavigerie, vol. ii., PI. xv. fig. 2, and text, p. 57 and note 1.
5 L. Carton, Notes sur les Ruines d'el-Kenissiah, p. 84, fig. 7, No. 3.
6 El-Bekri, Description de V Afrique septentrionale, p. 12.
7 CIL, viii. 69. Cf. Pagogurzenses and Aethogurzenses in CIL, viii. 68 ; cf. Polybius, Hist. i. 74.
8 Ptolemy iv. 3 § 10, Tovp[a.
9 In regard to Gurzil, there may have been some connection between him (in an aspect of the baleful sun) and the
baleful south wind which we have already_discussed. Cf. the line of Anticleides (ap. P. E. Jablonski, Pantheon Aegyptiorum,
Part i. p. 158) :
HeAtos Se Notoio a|/a£, i'epa£ Tro\vfj.op<fie.
10 Herodotus iv. 188. 11 G. Mercier, Les Divinites libyques, pp. 12 sq.
RELIGION 189
In connection with Libyan moon-cultus may be noted the North African taboo
against pig, already cited from Herodotus, 1 who says in a general manner that none of
the Libyans bred swine, and that the women of Barca abstain (not only from cow's
flesh, but also) from pork. In Egypt existed a similar taboo, for which is an explanation
which might apply to Libya. The Egyptians held swine to be so unclean that " if a
man in passing accidentally touch a pig, he instantly hurries to the river, and plunges
in with all his clothes on." 2 Yet on days when the moon was at full, swine were offered
to the Moon-God, and the sacrificers ate of the flesh, though " at any other time they
would not so much as taste it." 3 The Libyan taboo may have had a similar character.
DEUS F ATI DIC US
It is necessary now to discuss a Libyan god whose name is only known through
Egyptian, Carthaginian, and Greek identifications : the indigenous Libyan god of the
Oasis of Ammonium (Siwah), who may conveniently be styled the Deus Fatidicus.
It has been frequently stated that the Egyptians occupied the Oasis of Siwah as
early as the XVIIIth Dynasty. 4 Of this there is no proof: the earliest remains in the
oasis belong to Ptolemaic or late New Empire times ; and if the Egyptian occupation be
placed as far back as 550 B.C., the archaeological requirements will be amply fulfilled.
When, some time about this date, the Egyptians came permanently to control this
oasis, they found there established a cultus of a Libyan god whom they at once
identified with Anion, 5 the god who, owing to the political rise of Thebes, his early
home, had become the national god of the whole Nile Valley. So firmly established in
the popular mind did this identification become, that not only was the Deus Fatidicus said
to have been of Theban origin, 6 but a number of dragoman-storieg were set afloat in
late times, which claimed a Libyan origin for the Theban god. Thus, according to one
account, Amon was a Libyan herdsman, who brought to Dionysus, when the latter was
in Egypt, a large number of cattle. In recognition of this gift, Dionysus gave Amon
lands at Thebes, and raised him to the dignity of a god. 7 Another tale of this sort relates
that Dionysus (or, as others maintained, Heracles) was on his way to India, and was leading
his army through the Libyan wastes ; that, being overcome with thirst, the god invoked
the aid of his father Zeus, who sent to him a ram (the sacred animal of Amon). Following
the ram, he came to a certain spot where the animal pawed with its foot, and a spring
gushed forth. 8 Yet another tale relates how, in the region between Carthage and
1 Herodotus iv. 1 86. 2 Ibid. ii. 47.
3 Ibid. ; cf. Plutarch, De hide et Osiride, §18. In regard to Libyan Moon cultus, two ancient superstitions deserve
notice : (1) the Nasamones searched for carbuncles, which they believed to be of divine origin, when the moon was at
its fullest (Pliny xxxvii. 7) ; and it was believed that the Ammonian salt waxed and waned with the moon {ibid. loc. cit.).
4 Recently by C. Sourdille, Herodote et la Religion de /' Egypte, p. 158.
6 To avoid over-elaboration, I have used the form " Amon " indifferently for the Theban or the Siwan god, though
it would perhaps be more exact to employ the form " Amon " as a transcript of the Egyptian j] , and the form
"Ammon" to indicate that a classical source was being used.
6 Herodotus iv. 181. Y Hyginus, Astronomica, i. 20.
8 Servius ad Verg. Jen. iv. 195. Cf. Hyginus, loc. cit. ; idem, Fabul. 133 ; Lutatius ad Statii Thebaid. iii. 476 ;
L. Ampelius, Liber memorialis, 2 ; Tertullian, De pallio, 3 ; Martianus Capella ii. p. 39, edit. cit.
190 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Cyrene, some herdsmen found a child seated on the sands, wearing ram's horns, and
uttering prophecies. On being taken up, it ceased speaking, but on being again set down,
it recommenced. 1 Suddenly it vanished, and the herdsmen, then recognizing its divine
nature, there began to honour the god Zeus-Amon. 2 Diodorus Siculus relates vaguely
that Amon was a mythical Libyan king ; 3 Pausanias, 4 Eustathius, 5 and Macrobius 6
distinctly imply his Libyan origin, while [Lucian], less clearly, does the same. 7
The stories are of some value, as casting a little light on the nature of the Deus
Fatidicus. They cannot, however, be seriously regarded as proving anything more than the
closeness of the identification between the Deus Fatidicus and the Theban Amon in late
times. This is the more strongly the case, since from the Egyptian sources can be derived
no evidence tending to prove that the Theban and Ammonian gods were one. A custom
existed, it is true, of making annually a twelve days' progress in Libya with the image of
the Theban Amon and the other Theban gods ; but this custom itself was of much the
same origin as the above stories, and was not known before late times. 8
The distinction between the Deus Fatidicus and the Theban Amon, despite the
identification of the two, can be discerned even in Herodotus. That writer, for example,
has different styles for the two gods. The Libyan one he regularly calls " Zeus-
Ammon," Zei>? "A^av. 9 He suspects that the worshippers of the " Zeus " of the oasis
have given their god this name because the Egyptians call Zeus " Amoun." 10 The
Egyptian god he regularly terms the " Theban Zeus," Zevs ®r)/3cuev<:. 11 The Libyan
character of " Zeus-Ammon " = Deus Fatidicus appears strongly in the story told by
Herodotus concerning the inhabitants of Marea and of Apis in the region contiguous
to the Egyptian Delta on the west. Those people, counting themselves Libyans, were
discontented at the religious impositions forced upon them by the Egyptians. They
appealed to the oracle at Ammonium. 12 Again, Cambyses III., while he left the
sanctuary of Amon at Thebes in peace, launched against that at Siwah an expedition
which was to enslave the worshippers of "Zeus-Ammon," and " fire the temple where Zeus
gave his oracles." 13 As a recent writer 14 has shrewdly observed, this " difference in treat-
ment is significant." Furthermore, if historians are right in supposing that Siwah was
1 Cf. the well-known legend of the Libyan Antaeus, who with each fall he took in wrestling gained fresh strength
from Mother Earth. Apollodorus ii. v. ii; Hyginus, Fab. 31; Pindar, hthm. iv. 52; Lucan iv. 617; Statius,
Thebaid, vi. 893.
2 Servius, toe. cit. 8 Diodorus Siculus iii. 68. * Pausanias iv. 21.
6 Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 211. Cf. Dionysius, Perieg. 211 sq.; Nonnus, Dionysiaca xiii. 370; Phaestus af.
Schol. Pind. Pyth. iv. 28 ; Martianus Capella ii. edit. cit. pp. 44, 48.
6 Macrobius, Saturnalia, i. 21. 7 Hyginus, Astronomica, i. 20.
8 Eustathius ad Homer, Iliad, i. p. 128 ; Diodorus Siculus i. 97. Diodorus says of the return of the god ws !£
AWioirlas rov deov irapovros. But the geographical requirements, and his own statement that the progress was si's t»)v
Atfivqv, show that Libya, and not Aethiopia, was meant. Cf. idem, iii. 68. Both Diodorus and Eustathius, he. cit.,
have drawn on a common source. 9 Herodotus i. 46, ii. 18, ii. 32, iii. 25.
10 Ibid. ii. 42, 'A/iow yap Alyvrrrwi KaXeovat A Ala, Cf. Plutarch, De hide et Osiride, § 10 (p. 354, Xyland.) ;
Iamblichus, De mysteriis, viii. 3, 'AftZv ; Servius ad Verg. Aen. iv. 196, . . . Libyae [lege Libyes], hamtnone arietem
appellant. This last recalls the modern Siwan ojjcI~, for Amon {vide supra, p. 63).
11 Herodotus i. 182, ii. 42, 54, iv. 18 1. 12 Mid. ii. 18.
1 3 Ibid. iii. 25. u c. Sourdille, op. cit. p. 153.
RELIGION 191
not occupied by Egyptians before the sixth century B.C., it can hardly be believed that a
god introduced from Egypt would have attained to such great and such early reputation
as the god of Siwah enjoyed. The " opening up " of the oasis, the dignifying of a
barbarous, but strongly supported local cult, by the recognition in its object a form of the
Egyptian national god, would explain how the oracle of the Deus Fatidicus sprang as
suddenly into prominence as it did ; but it is absolutely necessary to believe that such a
cult existed, 1 or Thebes or Diospolis, and not Ammonium, would have remained the chief
seats of the prophetic god. On these grounds it becomes easy to understand how
Croesus, in distant Lydia, made trial of the oracle about the time when, or even some-
what before, the Egyptian occupation of Siwah took place ; 2 and how, by the fourth
century B.C., no oracle in Africa, not even that of Buto in the Delta, had come into
better repute ; and why heads of the Dm Fatidicus are found so early and in such
numbers on the Cyrenaic coins. 3 These arguments, in themselves enough to indicate the
originally separate identities of the Deus Fatidicus and of the Egyptian Amon, may be
supplemented with one more, which is of great weight ; the Deus Fatidicus was such
indeed — essentially a god of prophecy. The immense popularity of the oracle at
Siwah is well known. The trial made by Croesus has just been mentioned ; other
instances, authentic and fictitious, attest the fame of the desert god. Plutarch states * that
the god of the oasis foretold the death of Cimon, which took place in B.C. 449 ;
the Athenians kept a special galley at state-charges to convey questions to the Libyan
god ; 5 around his temple at Ammonium might have been seen a number of columns,
surmounted by dolphins, and inscribed KTPENAIflN ©EflPflN in testimony of the
gratitude of his Cyrenaic votaries ; 6 there even sprang up in Greece secondary
sanctuaries of the god, as at Thebes in Boeotia, where the sculptor Calamis made a statue
of the Libyan divinity, which, with an appropriate hymn, was dedicated by the
poet Pindar. 7 At Aphytis, where another temple had arisen, Lysander, who had laid
siege to the city, withdrew because of a dream-warning from the god, to whose Libyan
sanctuary he afterwards made a pilgrimage ; 8 and every schoolboy has read some
version of Alexander's visit to the desert sanctuary. To go no farther, it may be said
that the character of the Libyan god was primarily and essentially that of a seer and a
prophet ; and herein he essentially and widely differs from the Egyptian divinity with
whom he became identified. The Theban Amon was primarily a god of cultivation
and of the harvest : later, in his national character as Amon-Re, he was a deity of
general scope — a king of gods, a divine protector, a conferrer of national blessings.
Although he gave oracles, or rather judgments, in a perfunctory manner, he never
1 An oasis such as Siwah must inevitably have been regarded in early times as a spot of peculiar sanctity. Cf. the
Semitic conceptions of " Ba'al's land," etc., so strikingly elucidated by W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites, passim.
2 Herodotus i. 46. 3 C. L. Miiller, Numismatique de Pancienne Afrique, vol. i. pp. 101 sqq.
* Plutarch, Cimon, § 18.
6 Hesychius in verb, ri/xta ; cf. Aristophanes, Aves, 619, 716 ; Plutarch, Nicitis, § 13 ; Plato, Leges, v. pp. 738 c, etc.
6 Strabo i. p. 49. T Pindar, Frag. 36, ed. Bergk.
8 Plutarch, Lysander, §§ 20, 25 ; Pausanias iii. 18 ; Nepos, Lysander, 3.
Fig. 78a. — (Front).
Fig. 78/;.— (Back)
hi
V&&
u VS."WS
m>.
%\
«$?« '
^ . £ |§^t
Fig. 78c— (Right Side).
Fig. yid.— (Left Side).
RELIGION
193
eus
became reputed as a seer : his functions were quite different from those of the D,
Fatidicus, and clearly point to the different origins of the two deities.
In regard to the form of the Libyan god, there has been not a little speculation,
chiefly on account of a passage in Curtius which, had he deliberately designed it to
engender discussion, could scarcely have been better conceived. Id quod pro deo
colitur, says Curtius, speaking of this prophetic god of Siwah, non eandem effi-giem
liabet, quam vu/go diis artifices accommodaverutit, umbriculo maxime similis est habitus,
smaragdis et gemmis coagmentatus 1 (" that which is revered as a god has not a likeness
the same as that which artists have commonly given to divinities : its seeming is
most like to an umbriculum, studded with emeralds and gems"). The word umbriculum,
unfortunately, is not found in any other writer, and its meaning is therefore not certainly
known. Emendation to umbraculum serves only to deepen the mystery ; and several
editors and writers 2 have, in despair, and against MS. authority, read umbilico for umbriculo,
and supposed that the form of the god was omphalic. That to Greek or Roman eyes it
may indeed have seemed so is possible : at present, the important thing to note is that
the local aspect was neither anthropomorphic nor zoomorphic ; it was of unusual and
peculiar form.
This form has been recognized in Egypt by Daressy. 3 Three very peculiar faience
statuettes one of which is shown (Fig. 78, a, b, c, d), were found some years ago in the
excavations by the Service des Antiquites 4 at Karnak. These
proved to be, by the inscriptions upon them, representations
of the god Amon. The god appeared as a lump or mass of
curious shape, seated upon an elaborately ornamented throne,
the lump or mass itself being lavishly decorated. Daressy
called attention to the fact that these strange figures were
evidently related to two representations which had been
noticed before : the one a relief of Roman times on the
temple of Karnak (Fig. 79), the other an etching on a
bronze mirror found at Mit Rahinah (Fig. 80). 5 Both
these latter show not only the enthroned mass, but show
it surmounted by a head of Amon in the Egyptian style,
wearing the two feathers. Adopting the conjectural reading
umbilico in the passage of Curtius cited above, Daressy sup-
posed the enthroned mass to have represented an omphalus.
Thus, although he recognized that this form of Amon was non-Egyptian, and wholly
Fig. 79.
1 O. Curtius iv. 7. 23.
- E.g. E. Naville, Le Dieu de I' oasis de 'Jupiter Ammon, in the C. R. de V Acad, des I user. ; G. Daressy, Une Nouvelle
Forme d' Ammoti, in the Annates, ix. 64 sqq.
3 Op. cit. 4 Cairo Museum, Nos. 36,754, 36,755, 38,171.
5 G. Daressy, op. cit. p. 67; Idem, Une Trouvaille de bronzes a Mit Raliineh, in the Annates, iii. 169 sqq., and pi. ii.
fig. 1.
2 C
'94
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
different from the anthropomorphic figures of the Theban Anion, who is regularly repre-
sented as a man, sometimes with the head or horns of his sacred animal, the ram, Daressy
failed to perceive the real significance of the monuments he was discussing. The enthroned
mass represents a body in the sitting posture which Herodotus states to have been that
in which the Nasamones buried their dead. Examination of the Karnak figures even
shows the cordings of the bale in which the body was wrapped (Fig. 78). The heads
with plumes shown in the Karnak relief (Fig. 79) and the Mit Rahinah bronze (Fig. 80)
are merely Egyptian attempts at emphasizing the identity of the Libyan Deus tatidicus
Fin. So.
Fig. 81.
with the national god of the Nile. The appearance of these representations as a whole
recalls strongly that of the body wrapped in a bull's hide, the A ^ , teknw, sometimes
seen in Egyptian funereal scenes 1 (Fig. Si, a, /;, and especially c).
This recognition of the form of Amon, described by Daressy as a body contracted
and wrapped for burial, gives the key to the whole situation at Siwah. The strength ol
manes-worship among the Libyans has been noted, as has the deeply-rooted practice,
surviving until present times, ot consulting the dead about the future. This accounts
for the fact that the god of Ammonium was, first and foremost, a god of prophecy. He
was the hypertype ol those ancestors or men of renown to whose graves the Libyans
resorted to learn the future.
The responses or monitions of the Deus Fatidicus were sometimes, as in the case of
Lysander, conveyed, as were those of the prophetic dead ot Libya, by means of dreams.
The formal consultations at Ammonium were, however, delivered in a more imposing
manner. 2 The god was borne in a procession through the palm-groves surrounding his
temple. Eighty priests bore on their shoulders a barque — this conveyance betrays at
once the Egyptian influence of Amon-Re — on which rested the golden shrine of the
divinity. The barque was ornamented with numerous silver paterae hanging down from
1 Cf. G. Maspero, in Mem. de la Mission Francaise, V. fasc, iii. pp. 435 sqq. ; J. J. Tylor, Wall Drawings . . . of E/-
Ktib, The Tomb of Paheri, pi. viii. register 7, and text.
2 For what follows, C). Curtius iv. 7. 23 sqq. ; Strabo xvii. p. 8 1 4. ; Diodorus Siculus xvii. 50 sqq.
RELIGION 195
the gunwales — perhaps representing the grave-gear of the dead god — and the image of
the god itself was studded, as has been said, with precious stones. A long train
of virgins and matrons followed the barque, singing " uncouth hymns in the Libyan
tongue," with a view to propitiating the god, and inducing him to return to the
consultant a satisfactory answer. The deity was carried in the direction in which
he himself willed his bearers to go. This suggests an interesting parallel in modern
Egypt, where the attendants at a funeral believe the corpse exerts a mysterious influence
on its bearers, directing them as to where they shall go. 1 At Ammonium, after the
procession, the god made answer by gestures 2 to the questions put to him. In classical
times these responses were interpreted by the priest, who had even the condescension to
put the replies into verse, in the manner of the best Greek oracles ! 3
The Deus Fatidicus was served by both men and women, who were termed by
the Greeks lepoSovXoi. The women took part in the processions of the god ; and in
Herodotus's story of the Theban origin of the oracle — a story itself patently of Theban
origin — it was a woman who was said to have founded the desert sanctuary. 4
So much, then, concerning the original difference between the Deus Fatidicus and the
Theban Amon, and for the true nature, in the beginning, of the former. An important
and interesting question may now be considered — the sacred animal of the Libyan god.
This animal was the ram : a fact which the Egyptians, who held this animal sacred to
■their national deity, 5 seized on with avidity, as strengthening the bond between the two
gods. One might, in fact, be led at first glance to suspect that the ram, as a sacred
animal of the Deus Fatidicus, had become so by Egyptian means, did not a peculiar
body of evidence lead to the conclusion that the ram was one of the important figures
among the native Libyan sacra. How it became first associated with the god of
Ammonium cannot be decided : possibly it was the totem-animal of his worshippers,
possibly the Deus Fatidicus came to be regarded as a phase of the Ram-god. The wide
geographical range of ram-worship in Northern Africa might incline one to the latter view.
The Barbary sheep (Ovis lervia and O. longipes) was anciently found in Eastern
Libya, and its strength and speed, the inaccessibility of its haunts, and its. fondness for
mountain heights, all tended to make it an animal which, to savage minds, would seem
worthy of reverence.
1 New chiefs were by a certain Hausa tribe thus chosen : A bull was killed as soon as the old chief died. The
corpse was wrapped in the hide, placed on a bed, and then carried outdoors. The deceased's kinsmen stood in a ring
round his body, while the town-elders thus bespoke the corpse : " O corpse, show us who is to be our chief, that we may
live in peace, and that our crops may do well." The bearers then carried the body round the ring, and it would cause
them to bump against the man it wished to succeed (A. J. N. Tremearne, Hausa Superstitions, p. 104).
2 Servius ad Verg. Aen. vi. 68 ; Strabo he. cit. ; Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 211, lO-roptiTai 8e ras /iavreias Sta
crvfx.ji6X.tiiv kv " Afijitiivo's yivecrdau, tjtol Stci crx^/xaTCov tlvuiv /cat Karavevcrewv /cat dvavev(reo)V.
3 [Callisthenes], p. 31, 26. Cf. Silius Italicus, De hello Punieo, iii. 700 sqq.
i Herodotus ii. 54. For the hieroduli cf. Procopius, De aedificiis, vi. 2.
5 Herodotus ii. 54. Cf. Servius ad Verg. Aen. iv. 196 ; Plutarch, De hide et Osiride, § jz\; Strabo xvii. p. 559 ;
Clemens Alexandrinus, Protrept. p. 25 ; Proclus, In Timaeum, i. p. 30 ; G. Maspero, Etudes de mytkologie et d'archeologie
egyptienne, ii. p. 401 ; C. Sourdille, op. cit. p. 155.
196
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
At Zenagah, in the Western Sahara, at a point far removed from Egyptian or other
non-Libyan influence, exists a fine and early rock-glyph of a ram, wearing on its head
what seems a rayed disc (Fig. 82). The glyph is a full metre in length, and the surface
of the rock within the outlines has been carefully and neatly polished. About the neck
of the animal is a sort of collar. The rayed disc is surmounted by what appear to be a
pair of plumes. The whole is an imposing monument of primitive graphic art, and is
Fig. 82.
Fig. 83.
utterly different in technique from the late " Libyco-Berber " rock-scribings found in all
parts of the Sahara, wheresoever the stone is suitable for them. The Zenagah ram is
sculptured on a high face of rock overlooking the palms of the oasis, and, despite its
patination, is visible from some distance. 1 Another glyph from the same station shows
again the ram, but in this instance the re-
presentation is not so good (Fig. 83). The
artist has given the animal an attenuated
body like that of a greyhound, but the
head retains enough character to show
what is meant. 2 This glyph measures 82
cms. from head to tail. As in the first
instance, the rayed disc is present, and again
there appears a collar about the neck. In
this case, attached to the collar and worn
like a pectoral ornament, is a rudely circular
object like a bulla. A similar pendant
is observed on many popular terra -co ttas
of Graeco-Roman Egypt 3 which represent
the ram of the Libyco-Theban Amon. Besides the Zenagah glyphs, an admirable
example exists at Bu 'Alem in Algeria (Fig. 84). The Bu Alem ram is rendered with
1 E.-F. Gamier, Sahara algerien, p. 93 and fig. 14. Gautier well observes at the end of his description, " On echappe
difficilement a la conclusion qu'elk [the graving] avail une signification religieuse."
2 Ibid. p. 89 and fig. 11. 3 E.g. Berlin Museum, No. 8794. Cf. Cairo Museum, No. 27,053, etc.
Fig. 84.
RELIGION
197
great care. Like the other two, it is of generous size, as is regularly the case with the
earlier African rock-drawings. About the neck is a collar. The disc on the head has
both in front of it and behind it an ostrich plume, 1 and at first sight appears to be
tied on by a band passing beneath the animal's throat. When, however, one narrowly
examines this supposed band, it appears that it is indicated not by a straight line as
a taut band should have been, and as are the parts of the collar. Also the " band "
projects a little below the throat. It is therefore justifiable to revise one's first
impression, and to think that here, by a curious touch of anthropomorphism, the ram
has been dignified with a side-lock such as was worn by the Libyan fighting-men on
the Egyptian monuments.
Another representation was found in 1851 at Old Arzeu. This was a head, rudely
sculptured, with the nose feebly worked out, and with the eyes, ears, and mouth merely
scored. A pair of curved ram's horns were sculptured at the sides. 2 A similar head was
not long ago found at Tementit, and identified as a ram's by Basset. 3
Besides this monumental evidence and the various indirect textual notices, it
is explicitly stated by S. Athanasius that the Libyans held the ram sacred. 4 He
states that this ram was called " Amen " ; but this is probably his own conjecture.
El-Bekri states that until the ninth century a.d. rams were worshipped between Aghmat
and Sus. 5
The sum of this evidence leads to the conclusion that, not only in Egypt, but also
in North Africa, the ram was a sacred animal. If one may judge by the rayed discs
worn by some of the examples, it would appear that in some localities at least the ram
had a solar aspect ; but here it is merely necessary to show that he was venerated by the
Libyans, and that quite without Egyptian intervention he may therefore have become
associated in some manner with the Deus Fatidicus of Siwah.
It was under his Egyptianized form that the cultus of the god of Ammonium
became widespread ; and this discussion may conclude with a brief account of the later
history of this divinity. The oracle of Siwah declined as rapidly as it had risen, but the
worship of the Deus Fatidicus- Amon did not die out until the Christian times. 6 Besides
the temples erected to this composite deity outside of Africa, others sprang up in Libya, as
at Augila. 7 On the Syrtic littoral was a station called 'k^ov^KKa (var. 'Apovyica, 'AyuoiWXa) ; s
another called "A^/xa^o? [/taj^], 9 the Ad Ammonem w or Ammonis 11 of the Roman itineraries ;
yet a third, near the Philaenorum Arae, was known to the Greeks as "A/i/t&wo? a\ow
1 Certainly they seem to be plumes rather than, as has been suggested, uraei, else the artist would not have inserted
a middle line in each. Cf. for this glyph S. Gsell, Monuments antiques de I' Algerie, vol. i. p. 53 and fig. 13.
2 L. A. Berbrugger, Bibliotbeque-Musee cC Alger, pp. 29 sq.
s E.-F. Gautier, op. cit. p. 253. 4 S. Athanasius, Contra gentes, 9, col. 20 B.
5 El-Bekri, Description de I'Afrique septentrionale, ed. de Slane, Arab, text, p. 161 =trans. p. 355.
a The later writers cited supra et infra ; add Juvenal, Sat. vi. 554 ; Claudian, De IF. consulatu Honorii, 144; Ausonius,
Epigr. 96 ; and especially Procopius, De aedificiis, vi. 2. 7 Procopius, he. cit.
8 Ptolemy iv. 3 § 1 1 . 9 Ibid. he. cit. 10 Tabula Peutingeriana, Segm. vii.
11 Cf. C. Mailer in Ptol. Geog. (notes) i. 2 p. 628 (a), p. 629 (b).
198 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
(a\<ro<; p, 1 the "Afifiavo? irijyat of the Stadiasmus) ; 2 while a fourth, — lepbv tov "Awmvo? —
existed near Antipyrgus in Marmarica. 3 At the present time, in the district south of
Benghazi, is a place called ur> \ Js, Tel Amun, the " hill of Amon," by the natives.
From this it appears how popular, after his identification with the national god of Egypt,
the god of Siwah became, even if, before that identification, his cultus was purely local.
The most important of the foreign developments of the Deus Fatidicus I have
not yet touched ; nor can I now do so more than briefly, for upon the cultus of
the Libyco-Egyptian god at Carthage a whole thesis might be written. The divinity
whom the Egyptians had assimilated with their \ c ~~ 1 imn, Amon, was adopted into
I AAAA/VA
the Carthaginian pantheon under the name of jon hsa Ba'al Haman, the word bsi Ba'al
being of course nothing more than the title of " owner " or " master ". There is here, it
may be remarked, no phonetic difficulty in finding the Egyptian n represented by the
Punic n : such dialect equivalence is perfectly possible in Berber phonesis ; and the single
o represents the m in. r-. and in many of the Greek and Latin transcriptions. 4
Several thousand Carthaginian votive stelae, constituting at least three-fourths of
all those found, are dedicated to the god Haman and to the goddess Tanit. 5 This is
the more extraordinary as the state gods of Carthage were the purely Semitic Baalim,
Astarte, Eshmun, Melkart, etc., and as, despite the universally theophoric tendency of
Semitic personal names, the Punic onomasticon offers few, if any, names in which that
of Haman appears. This is explicable on the supposition that Haman was adopted
into the Carthaginian pantheon from without ; and that he retained enough of his
Libyan character as a god of the dead to deter his votaries from giving to their children
his name, which would have such a sinister significance. 6
That Ba'al Haman was indeed a Carthaginian form of the Libyco-Egyptian god is
clear from his form. On his stelae appears sometimes the ram of the Deus Fatidicus
1 Scylax, § log.
2 Stadiasmus Maris Magni,§§ 82, 83, . . . eirl 'Afipuviov irrj-yas. . . . Against the identification of this station with
that mentioned by Scylax it may justly be urged that, whereas the latter was apparently near the Philaenorum Arae the
former, according to the Stadiasmus, was 305 stades distant from that place. But, on the other hand, Syrtic geography is
somewhat vexed, and, if "A. ctAo-os is the correct lection in Scylax, the grove would naturally be dependent on the springs.
The Ammonian Springs have been identified with the modern ^iUl^j, Bir el-bashir, the name (=puteus auspicatus) pre-
serving a memory of the time when the waters were sacred to Amon. Cf. C. Muller, note ad Stadiasm. § 82.
3 Stadiasmus Maris Magni, § 38.
4 Cf. Herodotus ii. 42 ; Iamblichus, De mysteriis, 8 ; S. Athanasius, loc. cit. Cf. the Hebrew form jidk as in O.T.
Jerem. xlvi. 25 ; Ezek; xxx. 5 ; Nahum, iii. 8, and Coptic A.JHOY/T as in O.T. loc. citt. {vers. Copt.).
5 Pere Delattre, Les Tombeaux puniques de Carthage. The typical formula runs as follows (I cite, for want of a
better example, one from W. S. W. Vaux, Inscriptions in the Phoenician Character, etc., No. 12, plate iv.) :
[t ^Jjhjb run 1 ? va-h
'[b-n] jon Syn 1 ? p«S
[tej-n 13 urn -m
|3D u mp
"To the lady Tanit, Ba'al-in-face, and to the lord Ba'al-Haman ; that which Hanna, son of Bad-Melkart, son of Magon
consecrated." Cf. CIS, i. no. 254 et alibi.
6 The finding of the stelae chiefly in cemeteries to some extent bears this out.
RELIGION
199
and of Araon, as in Fig. 85. Statuettes of the composite god wearing the ram's horns
have been found in Punic cemeteries (Fig. 86). In one instance he lacks the horns,
Fig. s
Fig. 86.
Fig. 87.
but bears on his left arm a standing ram (Fig. 87). The figure-heads of the
Carthaginian ships often had the form of the ram-headed god. Silius Italicus, in his
account ol a sea-fight in which a Carthaginian captain, in despair at seeing his ship in
ikmes, stabbed himself and poured a libation of his own blood between the horns of
the figure-head, has the words :
. . . dextra inde cruorem
Exeipit ct large sacra inter cornua fundit. 1
Similarly, another prays to the Amon-head in the bows of his ship; and Silius, in
relating it, remarks parenthetically :
Hammon numen erat Libycae gentile carinae
Cornigeraque sedens spectabat caerula fronted
Further evidence comes from Sardinia. There, in Punicized sites such as Tharrus,
numerous ram's-head amulets of Egyptian style have been found, the importations,
certainly, of Carthaginian merchants." Taken in conjunction with the other evidence,
this sufficiently proves the identity of Baal Haman of Carthage with the Libyco-
Egyptian god. How late his worship lasted in Punic Africa is not known, but probably
it was extinguished only after the advent of Christianity.
It remains to speak of one special phase of the Libyan Deus Fatidicus which has
purposely not yet been mentioned, as its discussion is in the nature of an appendix to
1 Silius Italicus, De bello Punico, xiv. 452 sq.
2 Ibid. xiv. 440 sq.
3 J. Lieblein, Notice sur les monuments egyptiens trouves en Sardaigne, pp. 13 sq. and figs. 22 sqq. With these amulets cf.
Alexandria Museum, No. 1197/465, and G. A. Reisner, Amulets in Cairo Catal. Nos. 12,329, 12,330, 12,332, 12,333,
12,336, 12,337, 12,3+3-
aoo THE EASTERN LIBYANS
what has now been said. It will be readily conceived that a nomadic people, living in
a country largely desert, and constrained to follow the vaguely-defined and waterless
trails running between oasis and oasis, would naturally evolve a divinity whose functions
were to guide and to protect the traveller — in short, some divinity not wholly unlike
the Greek Zeh fewo?. Even to-day a feeling exists in Africa that the wayfarer enjoys
a large share of the attention of Allah. A god of prophecy, a god who advises with
foreknowledge, and to whom that which is hidden to men and full of perplexity is
clear and patent, is, among a people living in such an environment as that which
surrounded the Eastern Libyans, in a fair way to become a god of roads, a divine guide,
and the friend of travellers.
Such a development took place in the case of the Deus Fatidicus. To one myth
which, illustrates this phase of his character, reference has already been made — that
myth relating how Dionysus (or Heracles), while crossing the desert, being overcome
with thirst, invoked the help of " Zeus-Amon " his father, who sent to his aid the
ram which pawed a water-hole in the sands. 1 Another story of divine guidance attaches
to Alexander's famous visit to the oasis. The Macedonian king, some days after leaving
the coast, found himself lost, waterless, and altogether in a strait place. A shower of
rain, which partially relieved the thirst of the army, was regarded as due to divine
interposition on the part of the god of Siwah, and the expedition was thereafter guided
on its way to the oasis, and on its return thence, by two crows (Aristobulus) or by a
pair of serpents (Ptolemy Soter). 2
In the anonymous Arabic history of Siwah is told a tale worth citing in this
connection. "A certain one of the governours of Egypt," writes the historian, "meted
out penalties upon some of his people, but these latter escaped into the desert with a
little food. Now after some time, their food being exhausted, they saw a ram, and the
ram trotting away into the hills, they followed it, and came to a town with men
dwelling in it. The inhabitants paid no taxes and had trees and streams and gardens,.
The newcomers inquired of the dwellers there concerning their country, and they said
that they never had to do with the outside world. And after dwelling there a long
while, the fugitives returned to Egypt. Afterwards they sought again for this oasis, but
found it not." 3 This interesting story, in which the ram appears as a guide to the lost
travellers, may be regarded as one of the latest survivals of the tales, once probably very
numerous, of the care bestowed by the prophetic Libyan god of Siwah upon strayed
wanderers in the desert. 4
1 Servius, ad Verg. A en. iv. 196 ; Lutatius, Schol, ad Luc. Pharsal. iv. 672.
2 Arrian, Anabasis, vii. 14. 23 ; Plutarch, Alexander, § 72.
3 These mysterious desert cities are, in Persia, Arabia, and Africa, the theme of a thousand tales. Readers of the
Arabian Nights will recall the classic story of the lost city of Iram (Kuran, surah lxxxix. 6). Perhaps the earliest notice
of these hidden cities is in Strabo vii. p. 299, where the geographer cites a Greek critic as censuring many writers for
believing such absurdities as "that in Libya there exists a city of Dionysus which no one can find twice."
* Such powers of guidance as the Theban Amon seems to have had were derived from his neighbour Min of Coptos,
patron of the Coptos-Red Sea road. Cf. A. Erman, Egyptian Religion, pp. 58 sq.
RELIGION 201
Deus Coelestis
A French scholar, whose works are marked with equal ingenuity and soundness,
established the existence among the ancient Libyans of a sky-god of general and vague
character, whom it is here convenient to designate simply as Deus Coelestis. 1 The
oldest conception of the sky among the Eastern Libyans, and one which persisted until
the seventh century B.C., was that the firmament was a solid roof above the earth. This
idea is shown in the account given by Herodotus, who says that the Libyans who
brought the Greek colonists from Aziris to Cyrene praised the latter place by saying
that there " the sky leaked " 2 — i.e. rainfalls were frequent. This conception of the
firmament as solid no more interfered with the evolving of a personal Deus Coelestis in
Libya than it did in Greece, where similar cosmological views were entertained. 3
Unfortunately, present knowledge of the Libyan sky-god is chiefly derived through a
study of the late African " Saturnus," 4 who was widely 5 venerated in North Africa
during the second and third centuries a.d. 6 From such a study, however, the general
nature of the Libyan Deus Coelestis can be ascertained.
On the votive stelae of " Saturnus " appear not only solar discs, but stars, crescents,
etc. — in short, heaven-symbols in general. 7 On some of the stelae, "Saturnus" is
represented with Helius-Sol and Selene - Luna ; 8 and his Afro- Roman temples were
arranged with three cellae, that Sun and Moon might flank the Sky-god in the centre. 9
Toutain is therefore justified in his inference that the African " Saturnus " was a divinity
totius caeli et caelestis lumims. 10 This supposition receives strength from the fact that
" Saturnus " was associated with one of those vague nature goddesses of whom Rhea,
Cybele, and Ops Regina were examples, and who will be mentioned briefly farther on in
this chapter. In short, it seems clear that the more general aspect of " Saturnus " was
that of a great sky-father and weather-god, comparable to the Greek conceptions of Zei/?
uerto?, 11 Z. i/tyaato?, 12 Z. o/iyS/jto?, 13 Z. evdvefio<;, li and Z. oupto?. 16 The conception of " Saturnus " as
a general supreme being, universal and infinite, is elucidated by the dedications made to
him as Satvrno Avgvsto, S. Domino, S. Sancto, Deo Sancto, D. Magno, or
D. Invicto, 16 and by his confusion with the Roman Jupiter. 17 Among his more
1 J. Toutain, De Saturni dei in Africa Romana cultu. Add R. Cagnat, Etudes de mythohgie et d'kistoire des religions
antiques, pp. 246 sqq. ; P. Gauckler, Les Monuments historiques de la Tunisie, vol. i. pp. 81 sqq., p. 97 ; idem, in Nouvelles
Archives des Missions Scientifiques, xv., 1907, pp. 447 sqq. ; cf. CIL, viii. Supplem. 12,388 sqq.
2 Herodotus iv. 158, avSpes "EW-qves — the Libyans are speaking — kvdavTa ifj.iv iiriTr/Seov oIkUiv evdavra yap 6
ovpavbs TiTp-qrai. The passage does not refer to the fountain. Cf. E. B. Tylor, op. cit. vol. ii. pp. 71 sq. for similar
conceptions of a solid firmament.
3 For the confusion of the real and personified sky, vide E. B. Tylor, op. cit. vol. ii. p. 257; Horace, Od. i. I. 25;
cf. Clemens Alexandrinus, Stromat. v. p. 511 ; Athenaeus, Deipnos. x. p. 430 a ; Pausanias ii. 19, etc.
4 J. Toutain, op. cit. pp. 25, 41, 52, 62, 80, 131, 134.
6 Ibid. pp. 22 sq., 31. 6 Ibid. pp. 131, 141 et alibi. 7 Ibid. p. 35.
8 Ibid. p. 40. 9 Ibid. p. 96. 10 Ibid. p. 35.
11 Pausanias i. 19. 8, ix. 39. 4. 12 Apollonius Rhodius ii. 522 and Schol. ad loc .
13 Plutarch, Moral, p. 158 e ; Pausanias i. 32. 2. 14 Pausanias iii. 13. 8. 15 Aeschylus, Supplices, 594.
16 J. Toutain, op. cit. p. 27 ; occasionally he enjoyed locative titles, e.g. Sobarensis, etc. Ibid. p. 32.
17 As in CIL, viii. 10,624, which bears the dedication lOMSA?>=Iovi Optimo Maximo Saturno Augusto Sacrum.
2 D
202 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
specialized aspects, it is not surprising to find this Deus Coelestis appearing as a patron
of agriculture and, by extension, of flocks. Thus, this deity is called in the late
inscriptions frvgifer and devs frvgvm ; 1 and among his offerings, made largely by
native 2 farmers, 3 were first-fruits, grapes, dates, oil, wine, and pine-cones, 4 and in his
attributes he resembles the Italian Vertumnus or Silvanus. 6 The Greek heaven-god had
a similar phase as Zev? em/cap-mo?. 6
That the weather-god of the African farmer should also have been the guardian of
flocks and herds is not unnatural. A weather-god could, if he so willed it, literally
"temper the wind to the shorn lamb," and was of almost as much importance to the
shepherd as to the cultivator. Bulls, sheep, and oxen, 7 as well as fruits and vegetables,
were offered to " Saturnus," who appears occasionally in the Afro-Roman inscriptions as
a god of flocks. 8 A god of such broad and such vaguely-defined character was by
classical writers not unnaturally sometimes confounded with the Libyan deity who, under
his Egyptian name, was best known to the Graeco-Roman world — "Anion" of Siwah.
Hence, Pausanias is found vainly deriving the name "Anion" from an Egyptian word
which he gives as dfimvi, meaning " to graze " or " a shepherd," 9 being drawn into this
error because he has misapplied the name " Amon " first to the Deus Fatidicus, and secondly
to the Deus Coelestis in the latter's pastoral phase. Tertullian, falling into the same
confusion, styles the Libyan avium dives " Amon " ; 10 and Servius, in the legend cited
earlier in this chapter, which tells how " Amon " came as a herdsman to Dionysius in
Egypt, may be guilty of the same mistake. These errors are perhaps excusable, since
the sacred ram, which has already been noted in association with the Deus Fatidicus,
is also sometimes associated with " Saturnus." 11
A comparative study of gods similar in their nature and functions to the Libyan
Deus Coelestis leads to the belief that it would certainly have been out of the usual
course had this divinity lacked his spring and harvest festivals. The rites consecrated to
such a god would be, naturally, such as are suggested by the rhythm of animal and
vegetable life : the great phenomena, more especially, of procreation, birth and death.
The primitive, agriculturist is always struck by the phenomena of seasonal changes ;
to his eyes, European winter, or autumn in North Africa, are periods of dismal
sterilization, which he explains as occasioned by the death of a god. There follows,
1 J. Toutain, op. cit. p. 30. 2 /^ pp _ ?1> ^
3 Ibid. p. 31. i Ibid. p. 100.
5 Ibid. pp. 42, 54 ; cf. Roscher, Lexikon, ii. pp. 151 1 sq.
6 Plutarch, Moral, p. 1048 c. 7 j, Toutain, op. cit. p. 106.
8 CIL, viii. 2232, 2234, 2236 ; Supplem. 15,075, 17,675, 18,897, etc.
9 Pausanias iv. 23. 5 ; cf. Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 212. 10 Tertullian, De pallio 3.
11 Cf. the Thugga stela given in Nouvelles Archives des Missions Scientifques, p. 403 ; and perhaps, since the horns are
lacking to the head of the human figure, the statuette shown here in Fig. 87. In this connection cf. G. Schweinfurth ap.
J. Ball, Kharga Oasis, etc. p. 73. Schweinfurth found a Bulak (Hargah) family which cherished as an heirloom a
bronze ram, c. 10 cms. long, which was esteemed a charm against sterility in women. This may have reference to the
Deus Coelestis as a god of fertility, or to the Deus Fatidicus, as a god of the dead, for the modern Egyptian women often
try to touch or walk around corpses to have sons. Recently there was a hideous case of grave-desecration in the Delta in
this connection.
RELIGION 203
after a period, a season of rejuvenation ; the earth becomes again full of life and activity—
the primitive mind says : " the god is born again." Once this idea has been evolved, the
men who entertain it are not slow to institute rites of desolation with which they mourn
the death of the god, and carnivals whereby they celebrate his re-birth. Whereas the
Deus Coelestis, in those phases in which he corresponded to the Greek Zew virion,
Z. Ik/muoi, ktX, was a god eternal, universal, and unchanging, yet as the deus frugum, the
ovium dives, and the god of the husbandman's year, he could temporarily die. Hence
this god, together with Gurzil, the sun-god, is to be credited with having had some
share in those carnivals and rites of desolation, traces of which are yet clearly discernible
in so many parts of North Africa. 1 Some of these survivals offer striking points of
analogy to the carnivals of Southern Europe. The rites of rejuvenation have on the
whole survived better than the rites of desolation, man naturally preserving longer his
memories of pleasure than his recollections of pain. The ceremonial garlic-eating at
Siwah, however, which is practised annually during one week in October, may have had
its origin in a mourning-feast for the temporary death of the Deus Coelestis.
Dea Coelestis
The god just discussed appears to have had a partner of much the same nature
as himself. Her existence may be inferred from a fragment in Duris Samius, who says
that the tibia were of Libyan origin, and that they first were used in honour of the
Mother of the Gods. 2 In the Roman period this goddess, who appears in Carthaginian
times to have been confused with Tanit, appears under the title of Dea Nutrix, 2, and
as such is not infrequently associated with the Deus Coelestis.* It would appear that
it was this goddess, in her Punicized form, whom Apuleius characterized as rerum
naturae pare?is, elementorum omnium domina?
The Ausean Goddess
The Auseans, in the district about Lake Tritonis, worshipped a goddess whom
Herodotus and others speak of as " Athena." The Auseans had a sanctuary to this
divinity, 6 and her cultus is thus described by Herodotus :
The Ausean maidens keep year by year a feast in honour of Athena, whereat their custom is
to draw up in two bodies, and to fight with stones and clubs. They say that these are rites which
have come down to them from their fathers, and that they honour with them their native goddess,
1 E. Doutte, op. cit. pp. 496 sqq., 54 1 sqq.
2 Duris Samius, Frag. 34 in FHG. = Athenaeus, Deipn. xiv. p. 628 B.
3 CIL, viii. 2664 = R. Cagnat, Catal. du Musee de Lambese, pi. iii. fig. 2. Cf. CIL, viii. 8245 sqq. etc.
4 Dessau, Inscript. 4473 (?) ; CIL, viii. Supplem. 20,217, 20,592 ; CIL, viii. 264, 8245 sqq. ■ Dessau 4473 ;
CIL, iii. 314.
5 Apuleius, Metamorph. xi. p. 761, ed. Oudendorp ; cf. S. Ambrosius, Contra Symmachum. Cf. J. Toutain, op. cit.
pp. 50 sq., where she is characterized asfecundae et genetricis naturae numen.
6 Scylax § 1 10, 'Adr]va.<; TpirwviSos Upov.
204 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
who is the same as the Athena of the Greeks. If any of the maidens die of the wounds they receive,
the Auseans declare that such are false maidens. Before the fight is suffered to begin, they have
another ceremony. One of the virgins, the loveliest of the number, is selected from the rest ; a
Corinthian helmet and a complete suit of Greek armour are publicly put upon her, and, thus
adorned, she is made to mount into a chariot, and is led around the whole lake in a procession.
The Auseans declare that Athena is the daughter of Poseidon and Tritonis ; they say she quarrelled
with her father, and applied to Zeus, who consented to accept her as his child, and therefore she
became his daughter. 1 r
Before commenting on this passage, it may be noted, by the way that part of
the Syrtes, because of this identification of the native and the Greek goddesses, was
regarded by classical writers as peculiarly sacred to Triton and to Pallas. Callimachus,
for example, calls Lake Tritonis " Pallantias." 2
The statements of Herodotus may now be considered in detail.
i. The Legend. — From the fact that the goddess is said to have been born of
" Poseidon " and " Tritonis," it might be inferred that she was a sea-deity ; but this is
not borne out by her association with " Zeus." The explanation, in so far as there is
one, would seem to be merely that " Athena " was a goddess of ill-defined dominion,
whom it was equally rational to associate with sky-ruler or sea-ruler.
2. The Annual Feast. — The annual feast of the goddess suggests that, like the Deus
Coelestis, she had some association with the seasons. The ceremony, moreover, was one
of great importance. 3
3. The Ceremonial Arming. — The selection of the most comely of the virgins of the
tribe, and her arming in Greek {i.e. the best) war-harness is significant. The maiden,
armed and mounted in her car, represented, on the occasion of the festival, the goddess
in whose honour the ceremony was performed, and who must, it is clear, have had a
warlike aspect.
4. The Procession. — The goddess, in the person of the armed maiden, accompanied
by the other celebrants, made a circuit of the lake. This procession suggests some form
of lustratio, whereby the beneficent influences of " Athena " were invoked upon the lands
of the tribe. Such a procession is roughly paralleled in the ritual of the Arval Brethren,
whose circuit was made with a view to obtaining the protection, chiefly, of the Dea
Dia. The circuitous procession ending in a sacrifice was not, in fact, uncommon : in
this instance, the conclusion was not a sacrifice, but a ceremonial combat.
5. The Combat. — It is the ceremonial sham-fight with which the annual festival
concluded that shows most clearly the character of the goddess. One first notes that
none but maidens engaged in it, and that those who were accidentally slain were
supposed to be punished because they were not true maids. This points to the goddess
having had a strong virginal aspect. The significance of the combat is not hard to
1 Herodotus iv. 180 ; cf. Mela i. 7, who adds nothing to this account, except that the annual festival was cele-
brated on the birthday of the goddess. Cf. R. Neumann, Afrika . . . nach Herodot, p. 28 sq. and C. Tissot, De Tritonlde
lacu, passim, for the geographical setting.
2 Callimachus ap. Pliny v. 4 ; cf. Lucan, Phars. ix. 348 sqq. etc. 3 Cf. Herodotus iv. 189.
RELIGION
205
divine — it was a rain-ceremony in which was acted the strife between drought and
rain. The frequency of these drought-and-rain conflicts among primitive peoples, 1 and
their survival in North Africa at the present time, lead to the conclusion that the
procession of the Ausean goddess was designed to ward off evil and induce blessings on
the tribal lands, and the domestic combat with which the ceremony ended was meant
to ensure a good rainfall during the ensuing year.
This begets the strong suspicion that the Ausean " Athena " was but a localized
phase of the Dea Coelestis, the pollicitatrix pluviarum, who has already been mentioned
as a partner of the Libyan sky-god. From this point of view a very vexed and
difficult question may be approached, namely, that of the possible connection of this rain-
sender of the Auseans, and the Dea Coelestis of the Libyans in general, with a goddess
of the western Egyptian Delta. This goddess is Neith of Sais, who has by various
modern writers been related to the Ausean "Athena." 2
Neith 3 was a goddess established in Egypt from archaic times, her name appearing
in a royal name, Meri-Nit, of the proto-dynastic period. 4 Her chief place of worship
was Sais, the sacred name of which city was * ™ [j ^, h-t-nt, " the Dwelling of Neith," 5
and where she had an immense temple. 6 Her functions we learn from various sources.
On a naophorous statue now in the Vatican she is described as " the mother of the sun,
who began to. bring forth even before being born." 7 Plutarch says that the shrine of
the goddess bore an inscription which he thus translates :
'E^co elfu trav to yeyovbs ical ov ical ecrofievov, ical rov ifibv treifkov ovheis tra 6vr\rb<i aireKoXxr^rev.
I am all that has been, is, or shall be ; no mortal has ever uplifted my garment.
This is confirmed by Proclus :
KiyvtrTbOi IdTopovcTi,, h> too dSvrco T7)<; deov, Trpoyeypafifievov elvai to etriypajx^a tovto • ra ovra ical
ra iaofieva, ical ra yeyovora, iyco elfii. Tw ip.bv -yiruiva ovBel<; d"7reKaX.vyjrev • bv iyu> Kapnrov ereicov,
jjA,{o? eyevero.
The Egyptians relate that in the inner sanctuary of the goddess this inscription is to be read
on the doorway : I am that which is, which shall be, and which has been. None ever uplifted my
garment. The fruit which I brought forth was the sun.
1 Might not the institution of a ceremonial combat of this sort account for the high percentage of fractured fore-
arms among the Predynastic Egyptian women ? Such an explanation would be at least as probable as that the men so
maltreated the women that the arms of the latter were frequently broken. Primitive man does not to this extent
mishandle either his women or his other domestic animals.
2 On this H. Brugsch, Religion und Mythologie der alt. J'gypl. p. 342 sqq. ; A. Wiedemann, Religion der alt. Agypt.
p. 77 ; G. Jequier, in RT, xxx., 1908, p. 43 ; D. Mallet, Le Cube de Neit a Sais, p. 240.
3 ^ fa-;; (j ^5 1 Q "_^l> "-* wr ntr-tmw-t, "Neith the Great One, the divine mother " ; ]y , , J, mw-t nt r
" Neith, Mother of the Sun," etc. ; D. Mallet, op. cit. p. 94. One of the oldest of her symbols is ^ff>, two crossed
arrows on a staff. (The heads of the arrows are not pointed, but have the broad concave cutting-edge, such as is seen in
pi. viii. 32.) i C. Sourdille, op. cit. p. 180, n. 2.
5 J. de Rouge', Geographie ancienne de la Bane Egypte, p. 25. 6 D. Mallet, op. cit. p. 33 sqq. ; cf. p. 71 sqq-
7 H. Brugsch, Thesaurus Inscriptionum Aegyptiacarum, p. 637 i. 8.
8 Plutarch, De hide et Osiride, § 10 (p. 354, Xyland.). 9 Proclus, In Timaeum, i. 30.
206 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
From this it appears that in Neith one is confronted with a great nature-mother
of virginal aspect. This virginal aspect led the Greeks to identify her as Athena, 1
but the emphasis laid upon her character as a genetrix shows clearly that her primitive
role must have been one comparable to those of the Mater Deum, Ops Regina,
etc. Among other titles, Neith was called °lp * fcj, mh-wr-t, " the cow Mehurt," and
Q 5 ^| ff) O t h-t ms r\ " the cow which bears the sun." 2 These titles belonged to her
as most broadly conceived, i.e. as a sky-goddess.
The chief points of similarity between Neith and the Ausean goddess, both of whom
Herodotus calls " Athena," may be thus exhibited : —
Saitic " Athena " Ausean " Athena "
1. Sky-goddess. i. Sky-goddess.
2. Virgin-mother. 2. Strong virginal aspect.
3. Goddess of vegetation. 3. Rain-sender.
4. Warlike phase, as shown by her nome- 4. Represented at her festival as an armed
symbols : ^r and 5L . maiden. Ceremonial sham-fight.
5. Cow-form. 5- Cow-taboo in Eastern Libya. Cows stil
sacrificed for rain in North Africa. 3
These similarities are such that one cannot avoid feeling that, were more
material available, they would in all probability be increased in number. They
prepare one also for a curious piece of evidence first adduced by H. Brugsch,
which was the original cause of the suspicion that the Ausean and Saitic " Athenas "
might be local phases of the same goddess. The evidence in question is that
afforded by certain tattoo marks seen on Egyptian representations of Libyan captives.
Some of these marks are of more than merely ornamental significance, like the sun-
emblems already mentioned. Others, as has been said earlier in this monograph,
are either identical with, or vary only insignificantly from, the commonest hieroglyphic
sign for the Saitic goddess, | (early) or | (New Empire, late form Q). These signs
have, as tattoo marks, undoubtedly some special meaning : they are not Egyptian
brandings, moreover, since they only occur on the Libyan captives, and not on the
Asiatics, etc. 4
A writer who has recently discussed this question has formulated the theory
that Neith was originally a goddess of Libyans living in pre-historic Egypt, who with
them was forced out of an original position in the south to become firmly established in
the north-west. 5 As presented by its propounder, this theory is ingeniously sup-
ported ; it lacks, however, archaeological evidence, and not yet has a period arrived
where any question of early ethnic shiftings in the Nile Valley can be considered as per-
1 Herodotus ii. 28, 59, 83, 169, 170, 175; Plato, Timaeus, p. 474; Hesychius in verb. N-jjt'^ij ; Eratosthenes in
Catalog. Regum Aegypt. xxii., explains the name Nitwk/hs as='A0?jva viK-rj^opos, etc.; cf. Apollodorus, Frag. 70 in
FHG ; cf. Roscher, Lexikon, in verb. Nit. 2 D. Mallet, op. cit. p. 94.
3 L. Bertholon, op. cit. p. 1 ;. But, as I have said, the cow-taboo was not universal in Eastern Libya ; the inhabitants
of Marea and Apis protested against being made by the Egyptians to observe it. Herodotus ii. 18.
1 These details have been discussed, supra p. 139 sqq. 6 G. Jequier, op. cit. p. 43.
RELIGION 207
fectly safe ground. 1 But from the parallel instituted above between the Libyan and the
Egyptian goddesses, from this occurrence of the Neith-symbol as a Libyan tattoo mark,
and from the geographical position of Sais, it seems that some connection between the
two divinities is highly probable.
General Character of Libyan Religion
If the preceding fragments in regard to the religion of the Eastern Libyans are con-
sidered from the point of view of the student of the temper and culture of this people, a
few general facts are deducible from them. Briefly, here is seen the religion of a people
who, while they had attained to anthropomorphic conceptions of deity, yet held tena-
ciously to a host of animistic ideas. The religion of the Libyans seems to have been
only partially iconic, to have presented many local variations and peculiarities, yet to
have been dominated by a few simple and not ignoble ideas which were common to most
of the North Africans. Thus, to the prevalent superstitions which regarded seriously
various sorts of art-magic and sorcery, was joined the cultus of a number of fairly well-
defined gods, 2 and of a few broadly conceived divinities like the Deus Coelestis. A belief
in the future life also, was deeply ingrained in the people.
In character it does not appear to have had an unusual number of gloomy features,
as is so often the case with African religions ; on the contrary, it seems, so far as can be
judged, to have been the creation of a race inclined to take a fairly cheerful view both of
this life and the next. Naturally, there is no evidence that it contained any but the
simplest doctrines, and, in short, it may be best defined as a barbaric religion, half
developed from the direct animistic nature-worship of savagery.
If parallels to the religion of the Libyans as it is known be looked for, it is in Egypt
that the most striking analogies are to be found. There, for example, the sun was associ-
ated, as in Libya, with the bull ; there the belief in the after-life of the dead is strongly
developed ; there, as in North Africa, the ram figures prominently as a sacred animal ;
and in Neith of Sais has just been remarked a goddess having striking resemblances to a
Libyan one. It does not do to build too much on these likenesses, but certainly there seems
to have been between the religion of the ancient Egyptians and that of the Libyans a con-
nection closer than existed between that of the latter and that, for example, of the Semites.
Just as knit into the Egyptian language is a definite Libyan element, so, too, in all probability
exist in Egyptian religion various elements of Libyan origin. These, however, cannot
yet be discerned, on account of lack of knowledge in regard to the ancient Libyans.
1 It is not evidence on this question of Neith and the Ausean goddess that Amasis sent as a gift to Cyrene a statue of Neith
(Herodotus ii. 182), for Amasis was especially under the protection of Neith, being called ((fin ^* ]> Fh-ms-sl-nt, and
Sais was his capital. As for the question of Neith and Tanit, I will only say that I disagree wholly on this subject with
L. Bertholon, of. cit. p. 8, and pass.
2 Procopius, De aedificiis, vi. 2; cf. Schol. in Apollon. Rhod. iv. 1492, Cod. Paris. = Agroetas, Frag. 4 in FHG,
evo-eBeis Se ot Tapdp,aVTes, nal vaol iv avrois iSpvvrai, u>s aAA.01 re kcu 'Aypotras la-ropet,.
208 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
In conclusion, the reader is again warned, as at the beginning of this chapter, that a
number of the views set forth above are too new to have had the advantage of criticism,
and that it is only by the excavation of indigenous sites in North Africa that one can hope
eventually to arrive at a more definite knowledge of the subject.
Judaism and Christianity
A few words on Judaism and on Christianity in Eastern Libya may here be added
by way of supplement.
In regard to the former, Jewish communities seem to have existed in Eastern Libya
from comparatively early times. Thus, a very serious rebellion of the Jews in Cyrenaica
took place in 115 a.d., and near Borium, in the Syrtis Major, was a synagogue, the
building of which local Hebrew tradition ascribed to Solomon I 1 It is a well-known
fact that the Berbers get on well with the Jews, and that many have adopted Judaism. 2
This explains how, in the rebellion of 115 a.d., such a large number of insurgents
came to be involved ; it is almost certain that the war, like its pretext, was religious
rather than racial.
Christianity entered North Africa at an early date, and the Christian population,
to judge by the archaeological evidence alone, was large and spread over a considerable
area. 3 Although pagans existed in the days of Justinian, who " converted " them, 4 in
the time of the Arab invasions there were a number of Christianized Berber tribes. 5 It
is curious to observe that the Berbers, who are such notoriously heretical Mohammadans
to-day, produced when Christians the heresiarch Arius, and in the western parts of
Eastern Libya, under the name of Donatists, committed a thousand savage extravagances.
There is one point which may be mentioned in this connection, since several
writers have been slightly in error concerning it. The cross is an element of common
occurrence in modern Berber ornamentation, and since the names of some months have
in many dialects preserved their Latin forms, and as the word for " angel " exists only
slightly modified in Berber, some writers have supposed that the cross 6 in modern
Berber tattooing, etc., is a relic of Libyan Christianity. This is an unnecessary
supposition, since a shield which, from the size of the cross on it, might have been
1 Procopius, he. cit. There are a number of Jewish families to-day in Benghazi which claim to have been settled in
the country since Roman times. The presence of Jews in the Syrtica Regio in Roman times is attested by the existence
of a station called Scina [ = Xc£pa£ "IcrKiva] locus Iudaeorum Augusti {Tab. Pent. Segm. viii.), the ijJ*AJ(, El-Yahudlah
of Idrisi, Clim. iii. § 5.
2 Cf. H. Barth, Reisen und Entdeckungen, vol. i. p. 53 sq. In the Jerusalem Talmud, Kilaim viii. and Sabbath v., one
finds a wire-drawn academic discussion in regard to Libyan proselytes, the question being how long a Libyan family need
profess Judaism before being accepted as Jews. The conclusion reached is that the Libyans stand in the same relation to
the Jews as do the Egyptians, and that three generations of profession must therefore precede their being received into
the fold. 3 Cf. ibid. vol. i. p. 117, the ruined basilica at Shabet Umm el-Harab.
4 Procopius, loc. cit.
5 Cf. Johannes Abbas, Chronic, p. 13 ; Abu '1 Hasan, Annalcs regum Mauret., ed. Tornberg, pp. 7, 15, 83 (for the
west) ; El-Bekri, Description in Notices et Extraits, vol. xii. p. 484 ; Ibn Haldun, Kitab el l Ibar, Transl. de Slane, vol. i.
p. 209 et alibi. 6 For an example, cf. H. Barth, op. cit. vol. i. 208, cross on a Targi shield.
RELIGION 209
a crusader's, exists on a prehistoric rock glyph in Tibesti ; 1 and as the cross is also seen
as an ornament in the ancient Egyptian representations of Libyans.^ Its true origin
in North Africa may be referred to the cruciform solar symbols already noticed in this
chapter. 3 Christianity, indeed, seems not to have been firmly enough rooted, even in
littoral Libya, to have left any deep or lasting survivals. There are no notices of
the persistence, in Eastern Libya, of a Christian element that was strong enough, as
in Egypt, to withstand the overpowering influence of Mohammadanism. 4
1 G. Nachtigal, Sahara und Sudan, vol. i. p. 308.
2 Vide sufra, p. 148.
3 Cf. the table of solar emblems in J. Dechelette, Le Culte du soleil aux temps prihistoriques.
4 S. A. Morcelli, Africa Christiana. The reader is referred to this work for a good general account of African
Christianity, written from the Roman Catholic point of view, and based almost exclusively on the literary evidence.
2 E
CHAPTER IX
HISTORY 1
The history of the Eastern Libyans hardly deserves to be dignified by that name,
since practically only records of their conflicts with more civilized peoples, made by
hostile annalists, survive. Yet in order to understand the life and character of the
ancient Berbers, and because of their contact with the important peoples of the
Mediterranean, these records are worthy of more study than they have yet received.
The history of the Eastern Libyans divides itself into two periods, both because of the
two main channels through which our knowledge flows, and because of the different
character of their history in earlier and in later times. The first of these periods may be
termed the Egyptian period, the second the Graeco-Roman. The first is the epoch
extending from the earliest historic times down through the period of the great
invasions of Egypt, a period at the close of which the Libyans are dimly discerned
in a state of flux, aggressive and unsettled. Our knowledge of this portion of their
history is derived almost wholly from Egyptian sources. The second epoch is one
of ethnic quiescence, relieved only by the unsuccessful revolts made against foreign
dominion in Africa, — an epoch in which the descendants of the invaders are seen as an
aggregation of factious and disunited tribes, at various points dispossessed of their
territories, and remaining in a state of barbarism — almost of savagery — beyond which
the other Mediterranean peoples had advanced. The sources for this period are almost
all Greek and Roman. In time, Period I. may be taken as extending from proto-
dynastic times to about iooo B.C., while Period II. may be extended from about
iooo B.C. to the Arab conquest in the seventh century a.d. The date iooo b.c. is,
of course, arbitrary, and must be recognized as such throughout this chapter.
Period I
The first act historically ascribed to the Eastern Libyans is, 2 characteristically,
one of combined revolt and superstition. Libyans in Egypt at the beginning of the
1 The substance of this chapter I have already published in CSJ, vol. vi. No. 71 (August 1912).
2 J. H. Breasted, History of Egypt, p. 47, states that King Narmar, at the beginning of the Dynastic Period, put down
a Libyan rebellion in the Delta, taking 120,000 captives, 400,000 cattle, etc. This statement was made on the archaeo-
HISTORY 211
Illrd Dynasty are reported by Manetho to have rebelled against King Nefer-ka-ra
(Nepherocheres), but to have laid down their arms on account of a portentous increase
in the size of the moon. 1 The whole episode is quite possibly fictitious, but it is on the
other hand conceivable that Manetho has here used an old annalist as his source. It is
not, at all events, long after the Illrd Dynasty that one learns certainly of conflicts between
Libya and Egypt, and of friction between the Libyans and the Negroes of the south.
The former are signalized as early as the Vth Dynasty by the reliefs in the Pyramid
temples of Ne-user-re 2 and of Sa-hu-re 3 at Abusir. From these reliefs it is clear that
both kings had Libyan victories, and from the position in which the sculptures in the
Sa-hu-re temple were placed, it is also apparent that the Libyans defeated by the king
dwelt to the south of Memphis, probably in the Fayum. It is worthy of remark that
at this early period the Libyan chieftains seem supplied with neatly made personal
ornaments as well as, or even better than, at any later period.
In the Vlth Dynasty a state of war existed between the Temehu Libyans and the
Negroes of Yam in the south. A trader-noble of Elephantine, in the time of Pepi II.,
made four journeys to the Sudan. On the third, as he tells in a record inscribed on
his tomb, he encountered a Negro tribe on the march against the Temehu. " His
Majesty," Harkhuf says in his narrative, "now sent me a third time to Yam. I set
forth . . . upon the Uhet road, and I found the chief of Yam going to the land of
Temeh, to smite Temeh as far as the western corners of heaven. I went forth after
him to the land of Temeh, and I pacified him, until he praised all the gods for the
king's sake." 4 That the district of Temeh which was to be attacked by the people
of Yam was in all likelihood the Libyan bank of the Nile in Nubia has already been
pointed out. The incident gives some insight into the state of constant raids and petty
wars always flickering along the borders of the Libyan area. It testifies also to the
prestige of the Egyptian Vlth Dynasty that Harkhuf could travel in safety with a tribe
of Negro raiders and pacify the chief of Yam.
This prestige arose partly from the fact that for some time before this the
Egyptians had recruited soldiers among the barbarians beyond the First Cataract. In
the reign of Pepi I., for example, an officer named Uni got together a number of
soldiers in the south, to engage in a campaign with " Asiatic sand-dwellers " (Bedawi)
in the north. Besides other recruits, the Negroes of Yam are mentioned, as are also the
people of Temeh. 5
In the Xlth Dynasty there again were wars between Libya and Egypt. The
logical evidence of the Narmar palette, great mace-heads, ivories, etc., from Hieraconpolis. Vide J. E. Quibell, Hierakon-
polis, pt. i. pi. xi., lower register; xii. fig. 4; xv. figs. I, 2, 3, 4, 7 ; xxv., lower register; xxvi. A, top and middle registers;
xxvi. B ; xxix., etc. I regret to differ from an authority so great as Breasted, but I cannot see how the people over whom
Narmar triumphed can be shown to be Libyans. To me they appear to have been Egyptians of the Delta.
1 Manetho, pp. 22-23.
2 L. Borchardt, Das Grabdenkmal des Konigs Ne-user-re, p. 47.
3 Idem, Das Grabdenkmal des Konigs S'alhu-Re', vol. i., Der Bau, p. 17 sq.
*BARi. § 335. 5 BAR i. §311.
212 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
first king of the Dynasty, Intef I., had among his hunting-dogs at least one bearing a
Libyan name, 1 and that this dog may have been sent to the king as tribute seems
easily possible. In the reign of his successor, Mentuhotep I., the Rebu and Tehenu
were defeated by the Egyptians, the victory being commemorated with others in
Gebeleyn reliefs. 2 It is not to be supposed that these " wars " were general, or that large
forces were engaged. That they were rather in the nature of raids, counter-raids, and
petty revolts of the Libyans settled along the Nile seems clear from the summary manner
in which they are mentioned by the Egyptian annalists.
Just such a raid is mentioned in the opening of the Tale of Sinuhe. The heir to
the Egyptian throne, Usertesen (I.), had been sent to the westward by his father,
Amenemhat I., to raid the Rebu. Sinuhe says : —
Behold, his majesty had sent out
A numerous army against the Libyans ;
The eldest son was commander thereof,
The Good God Usertsen.
Now, just as he was returning, having taken
Living captives from the Libyans
And all cattle, without limit, etc. 3
That this expedition was not merely a literary fiction seems certain from the
soberness and detail of the narrative, and from the fact that apparently even until Greek
times an echo of it survived. Diodorus relates that as a young man, the prince Usertesen
(Sesostris) was sent into Arabia, and then subdued a great part of Libya. 4 It is perhaps
in memory of his Libyan victories that the exquisite pectoral of Usertesen I. in the
Cairo Museum shows the king as a gryphon trampling the Southerners and the
Libyans.
In the thirty-fourth year of the reign of Usertesen, the Libyans had become so
impressed with the power of Egypt that it was possible for an officer named Itendidi
to visit " the land of the oasis-dwellers " 5 with a company of picked soldiers. The
object of his mission is not clear, but since it was both military and peaceful, it may
have had as its object merely the further display of Egyptian power. It is notable
in the vague notices of these early campaigns that it is the Egyptians, and not, as
later, the Libyans who appear to have been on the aggressive. The Libyans seem to
have felt a wholesome respect for the power of Egypt all through the Xllth Dynasty.
In the time of Usertesen III., an officer of the king brought "for him the good products
of Tehenu by the greatness of his majesty's fame." 6
Throughout the XVIIIth Dynasty the Libyans were apparently in continuous
conflict with the Egyptians. An official of Amenhotep I. mentions that in the king's
1 BAR i. § 421. 2 BAR i. § 423 H, and notes ad loc. cit.
3 BAR i. § 492. The tale goes on to say that on his return, Usertesen was met with the news of" his father's death.
4 Diodorus Siculus i. 53. 5 BAR i. § 527. 6 g^R i. § 675.
HISTORY 213
service he captured for him "three hands" of Imukehek "on the north." 1 Thut-
mose I. records his victory over the Ekbet ; 2 and in a hymn of triumph Amon-Re
addresses his successor, Thutmose III., saying : —
I have come, causing thee to smite the Tehenu. 3
Libyan chiefs brought to this king " tribute from the southern and the northern
oases," 4 and Hatshepsut, his powerful consort, received divine assurance that she should
" strike among the Tehenu." 5 Perhaps this prophecy was not recorded until after its
fulfilment ; at least we know that the Queen levied from the Tehenu a heavy tribute,
which consisted of "ivory and seven hundred tusks," and numerous large skins "of the
southern panther." 6 In short, so high was the prestige of Egypt in the reign of
Hatshepsut and Thutmose III. that Nehi, the viceroy of Kush, thus commemorated the
Egyptian power in the twenty-third year of the king : —
The countries of Tehenu do obeisance because of the fame of his majesty, with their tribute
upon their backs {hiatus) ... as do the dogs, that there might be given to them the breath
of life. 7
In the middle of the XVIIIth Dynasty, Amenhotep III. conducted a successful
war against the Tehenu, the captives being set to work on an Egyptian fortress. 8 The
Libyans within reach of Egypt had seemingly been overawed and reduced to a state of
partial subjection to the warlike kings of the early New Empire.
The desultory fighting did not, however, cease with the advent of the XlXth
Dynasty. On the contrary, the ethnic pressure from the west, which was presently to
culminate in the great invasions, steadily increased. The continuous infiltration of the
Libyans into the Egyptian Delta assumed proportions so menacing 9 that, in the second (?)
year of the reign of Seti I. that king foresaw that Egypt was likely to be seriously
threatened from the west. Before, therefore, setting forth upon his Syrian campaign, he
first engaged the Libyans. 10 That the outcome of this brief war was successful we know
from the annals of the king, but we are ignorant of its details. During nearly the
whole of the second year of his reign, Seti I. seems to have been in the Delta, 11 and
he apparently fought at least two pitched battles with the Libyans, 12 commanding in
person in both engagements (cf. Plates IV. and IX.). In the end, there came before
the Pharaoh the people of " the land of Tehenu on its knees," 13 numerous captives were
presented to Amon, 14 and the usual "tribute" was obtained from the enemy. 15 Had
Seti I., a really able and warlike monarch, followed up his victory and carried the
1 BAR ii. § 42. 2 BAR ii. § 70. 3 BAR ii. § 660.
* BAR ii. §§ 385, 386. The tribute probably contained ivory and ebony. Cf. BAR ii. § 387.
5 BAR ii. §225. " * BARii. § 321. fBARii. §413.
8 BAR ii. § 892 and note c, ad be. cit. 9 BAR iii. § 121.
i« Cf. BAR iii. § 135. " BAR i;i - § Iz0 -
12 Two general engagements are depicted in the Karnak reliefs of Seti I. Vide BAR iii. p. 39, figs. 1, 2, scenes 12 and
1 3 for relative position of reliefs.
1 3 BAR iii. § 147. u BAR iii. §§ 134, i35> etc - 15 BAR ;ii - §§ J 37, 138.
214
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Egyptian arms to the westward, instead of turning them to the east, the succeeding
course of Libyan and of Egyptian history might have been altered. For had the
Libyans, at a time when they had become sensible of a pressure from the west, met in
the east with aggression and a crushing defeat instead of with a temporary check, they
might in desperation have turned back to the west, might never have come to invade
Egypt by force of arms, and might never, as eventually they did by more peaceful
methods, have obtained the Egyptian throne. As it was, Seti I. turned to the east, and
there fought victoriously. The Libyans, re-
covering from the check they had received at
his hands, were soon able to give trouble to
his son and successor, Rameses II. Here again
details are lacking, but the record gives various
references to the disturbances in the west. 1
Pharaoh is characterized as wasting Tehenu. 1
Libya falls before his sword. 2 At Beyt el-Waly,
the king is shown slaying a Libyan chieftain
(Fig. 88), the title of the scene calling the
king " lord of the sword, embracing the lands
of Tehenu," 3 while at Abu Simbel Rameses II.
is seen standing on the prostrate body of one
Libyan and slaying another with his lance —
" the Good God slaying the Nine Bows, crush-
ing the countries of the North." 4
The most important detail in regard to these
obscure wars of Rameses II., however, is that
here, for the first time, the Sherden, who were
so deeply implicated in the Libyan invasions as
allies of the Tehenu, appear in conjunction with
them. In the Tanis Stela, the following mutilated but important passage occurs : —
He [the king] has captured the countries of the West, causing them to be as that which is
not . . . [the god] Sutekh on his right, in the battle, King Rameses II. He has ferried over . . .
come to him, bearing their tribute ; his fear penetrates their hearts. The rebellious-hearted
Sherden . . . them ; mighty . . . ships of war are in the midst of the sea . . . before them. 5
This reference to the rebellious Sherden, allies of Libya, and to the war-ships,
would indicate a naval battle in connection with the war. 6 The presence of the
Sherden allies and their capture are confirmed by another document, the so-called
Kadesh Poem, which refers to the Sherden whom " thou [set/, the king] hast taken by
1 BAR iii. § 448. 2 BAR iii. § 448 and note b, ad loc. cit. 3 BAR iii. § 464. * BAR iii. § 457.
5 BAR iii. § 491. For the first mention of the Sherden in Egyptian documents, cf. BAR iii. p. 136 note e, and
J. H. Breasted, History, p. 424. 6 gAR iii. § 488.
Fig. 88
X
w
h
<
Oh
O
oo
W
>
l-H
h
<
u
<
oa
HISTORY 215
thy might." l To the presence of the sea-allies of the Libyans may also be related a
sentence in the Aswan stela of Rameses II., which says of him that " he plunders the
warriors of the sea, the great lake of the north, while they lie sleeping." 2
In the end, some of the Sherden of "the captivity of his majesty from the
victories of his sword," 3 were enlisted in the army ; while he " settled the Tehenu on
the heights, filling strongholds which he built with the captivity of his mighty sword." 4
Yet despite his successes, Rameses II. repeated the mistake of Seti I. his father. The
Libyans had before his day been recognized as dangerous neighbours when by them-
selves ; in the time of Rameses II. they should, to a general and a statesman of his
sagacity, have seemed the more menacing because of their alliance with the sea-faring
Sherden, and they should have been not merely repulsed, but themselves vigorously
invaded. Probably the Egyptian king, finding the Sherden ready for mercenary service,
calculated that to Sherden allies of Libya, led by hope of plunder, he could
always oppose Sherden mercenaries of his own, certain of their pay and incited by the
hope of rewards. His interests, moreover, lay largely in Syria, where the political
balance could not be disturbed without seriously affecting Egypt.
The Libyan wars of Rameses II. may be justly considered as the prelude to the
great invasions which followed. The chronology of the campaigns is somewhat obscure.
Petrie is probably right in assigning a Libyan campaign to
the first year of the king's reign, 5 the Aswan stela above cited
being dated in the king's second year. Later in his reign,
also, Rameses II. again engaged the Libyans. 6 It is to be
remembered, moreover, that this sovereign regularly had
Libyan and Sherden soldiers in his army, 4000 such being
in a force despatched to the Wady Hammamat. 7
The most remarkable series of events in the whole
history of the Libyan race must now be considered — the
great invasions of Egypt in the XlXth and XXth Dynasties.
The causes of these campaigns will be discussed later ; at
present they will be related in the order in which they occurred, from the Merneptah
invasion, which has been characterized by Breasted as " one of the most serious . . .
which has ever threatened Egypt." 8 This invasion took place late in March in the
year five of the king's reign, when he was sixty-three years old. The Libyans had
1 Anastasi Papyrus ii., v. 1. 2. Cf. ibid, verso PL viii. 1. 1 and BAR iii. § 307.
2 BAR iii. § 479. The same inscription says that the Temehu have fallen for fear of the king. The name is
spelled Ty-m-h-nw, which leads Breasted to remark, note c, ad he. cit., that "it may be that Tehenu is meant." Cf.
W. M. F. Petrie, A History of Egypt, vol. iii. p. 46.
3 BAR iii. § 307. * BAR iii. § 457. 6 W. M. F. Petrie, he. cit.
6 A curious proof of this exists in the Beyt el-Waly temple, where a Syrian prisoner of the king's earlier wars (for
which J. H. Breasted, History, p. 423 sqq.) has been revamped, by the change of hair and beard, into a Libyan {vide
Fig. 89). I have to thank Dr. G. Roeder of Breslau for calling my attention to this piece of evidence.
7 J. H. Breasted, History of Egypt, p. 449. 8 BAR iii. §§ 569, 570.
216 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
again become menacing. Part of Egypt had. become, in the language of a contemporary
record, " not cared for ; it was forsaken as pasturage for cattle because of the Nine
Bows, it was left from the times of the ancestors. All the kings of Upper Egypt rested
in the midst of their cities ... for lack of troops." 1 Libyan marauders "repeatedly
penetrated the fields of Egypt to the great river, and spent whole days and months
dwelling " 2 in Egypt, where they passed " their time going about the land ... to seek
the necessities of their mouths." 3 The northern oasis and Farafrah — the district of
Toyeh — had for some time been cut off from Egypt. 4 This was the state of affairs
when the tribesmen of the west formed a powerful coalition against Egypt, and the
aged Pharaoh prepared " to protect Heliopolis, city of Atum, to defend the stronghold of
Ptah-Tatenen," 5 and " to protect the people." 6
The origin of the federation had its place, not among the Tehenu, the immediate
neighbours of Egypt, but among the Libyans farther west. The Rebu, under the
command of Meryey, son of Ded, allied themselves with various bodies of Ekwesh,
Teresh, Luka, Sherden, Shekelesh, and " Northerners coming from all lands." 7 With
these allies, the Rebu fell upon the Tehenu, who were probably, from remembrance of
the rough handling they had had from Rameses II. and Seti I., disinclined to violent
measures. They were not able, however, to stand against the allies, and were forced to
join them. The good-will of the Heta (Hittites), then the most powerful rival of Egypt
in the north, was secured, 8 and at a time when forage was plentiful and the weather
good, the allied forces began the march eastward. The coalition had been formed in
the month of March, 9 and in early April news came that the invasion had begun. The
Libyan forces were probably marshalled somewhere in Cyrenaica ; to oppose them,
Merneptah ordered a general muster to be held on the 8th of April — " in . . . Meber,
[an unknown locality] the choicest of his bowmen were mustered . . . his chariotry
was brought up from every side. . . . He considered not hundreds of thousands
in the day of the array. His infantry marched out, those who bear the hand-to-hand
fighting arrived, beautiful in appearance, leading bowmen against every land." 10 On the
1 5th of April the two armies drew near each other in the vicinity of Perire n in the
1 BAR Hi. § 577. 2 BARiii. § 580.
8 BAR loc. cit. Cf. the retrospect of Merneptah after his victory, BAR iii. § 585, "So this land of Egypt was in their
power, in a state of weakness ... so that their hand could not be repelled." Obviously an exaggeration, but indicative
of the real state of affairs.
4 BAR iii. § 580.
5 BAR iii. § 576. e BAR iii. § 578.
7 BAR iii. §§ 574, 579. For the identification of these peoples vide H. R. Hall, Oldest Civilization of Greece, p. 1 7 1 sqq. ;
W. M. Mailer, Asien und Europa, p. 371 and passim. It may be accepted that the Luka = the proto-Lycians ; the Shekelesh
= the Sicels ; the Sherden = the people who, after occupying Sardinia, gave their name to that island. The Ter-esh and
Ekw-esh have been repeatedly identified with the Tyrsi and Achaei. 1 do not accept all these identifications as
conclusively proved, and would further wish to suggest the possibility that the Luka-Lycians, Sherden-Sardinians, and
Shekel-Sicels may at the time of the XlXth Dynasty have occupied countries other than those they held in classical
times.
8 BAR iii. §§ 570 ; 580, and note A, ad lor. cit. a Cf. W. M. F. Petrie, op. cit. vol. iii. p. 108.
10 BAR iii. § 578. n BAR iii. § 583 ; cf. § 570.
HISTORY 217
western Delta. 1 The Libyan vanguard halted, and for a whole day the straggling
army of the invaders was massing for the attack. 2 From the numbers of the
slain and the captives, it would seem that the invaders numbered from twenty to twenty-
five thousand fighting men. It speaks well for the generalship of Merneptah that he held
his soldiery in check, and allowed the Libyans to form, rather than to expend his
strength in inconclusive skirmishes with advance parties of the enemy. The two armies
being assembled in face, the Egyptian infantry and chariotry attacked. 3 When within
range the archers of Merneptah began to pour a heavy fire into the Libyan van, their
bows being doubtless of a strength superior to that of those of the Libyans. For six hours
this fire was kept up, until at length the Libyans were thrown into confusion and began
to retreat. Meryey attempted vainly to rally his men, the retreat of the tribesmen
became a rout, 4 and the victorious Egyptians pursued them with cavalry as they fled. 5
"Their marchers-forward [their van]," says one of the records, "they left behind them,
their feet made no stand, but fled. Their archers threw down their bows, and
the heart of their fleet ones was weary with marching. They loosed their water-skins,
and threw them to the ground." 6 The pursuit was kept up as far as the Mount of
the Horns of the Earth, as the Egyptians called the edge of the plateau on the west
of the Delta. The total of the slain was over 9000, and as many more appear to
have been made prisoners. 7 Six sons of Meryey, a number of his kinsmen, and other
men of rank were killed, 8 while there " were taken before his face " 9 twelve " women
of the fallen chief of Libya, whom he had brought with him, being alive." 10 The Libyan
camp fell into the hands of the Egyptians, who fired the tents, 11 — " their camp was
burned and made a roast." 12 The personal belongings of Meryey were seized, his silver,
his gold, his vessels of bronze, the furniture of his wife, his throne, his bows, his arrows,
all his works which he had brought from his land, together with his oxen, goats, and
asses. 13
The plunder obtained by the victors was considerable. The following items were
listed :— 14
Weapons of war which were in their hands, carried off as plunder ; copper
swords of the Mesh wesh . . . . . .9,111
1 BAR iii. § 570. The attempt made by Golenischeff, in Zeitschr. far dgypt. Spracbe, xl. 101 sq., to prove, from a
papyrus in his possession, that the meeting took place south of the Fayum, has not met with general acceptance. For one
thing the presence of the sea-allies is against this, and, further, the words " western rwd" point emphatically to the
western margin of the Delta ; for the word rwd is a term used only of the Delta. W. M. F. Petrie, he. cit., is also
wrong in placing the battle near Kafr ez-Zayat, for he does so on the strength of an erroneous lection by H. Brugsch,
for which the reader is referred to BAR iii. § 579, note d, ad he. cit. The exact locality remains unknown.
2 BAR iii. § 583. 3 BAR he. cit. 4 BAR § 584.
5 BAR iii. J) 584, "Lo, the officers, who were upon the horses of his majesty, set themselves after them." Cf. J. H.
Breasted, A History of Egypt, p. 468.
6 BAR iii. § 609. 7 BAR iii. §§ 588, 601 and notes. 8 BAR iii. § 588.
9 BAR iii. § 610. 10 BAR iii. J5 588. u BAR iii. § 589.
12 BAR iii. §610. 1S BAR iii. § 5 84.
14 BAR iii. §§589, 601. Both these records, the great Karnak inscription and the Athribis stela, are combined above,
but some obscure items, found locc. citt., are here omitted.
2 F
, knives [of copper], and various
120,214
12
1,308
X
X
3> x 74
2,O0O
218 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
(Libyan (?) small arms (?)) ...-••
Horses which bore the fallen chief of Libya, and the children of the chief of
Libya, carried off alive, pairs .
Various cattle
Goats ....
Silver drinking-vessels
T^ar-vessels, rehedet-vesszh, swords, armoui
vessels
Bows 1 ....
From the disastrous field Meryey escaped with difficulty, alone or with but few
companions. 2 "The wretched fallen chief of Libya," says the Israel stela, "fled by
favour of night alone, with no plume upon his head ; ... he had no water in his
[water-]skin to keep him alive." 3 In his flight he passed an Egyptian outpost called
the Fortress of the West, 4 the commanding officer of which had news of his passage and
reported it. The commandant of the Fortress of the West wrote to the court as
follows : —
The fallen Meryey has come, his limbs
have fled because of his cowardice, and
he passed by me by favour of night,
in safety ... he is fallen, and every
god is for Egypt. . . . His condition is not known
whether of death or of life ... if he lives
he will not again command, for he is fallen,
an enemy of his own troops . . . They have
put another in his place, from among his
brothers, another who fights him when he sees
him. All the chiefs are disgusted . . . 5
The last lines of the above despatch give an interesting glimpse into the position of
affairs in Libya after the defeat. Meryey, like many another barbaric leader, found to
his cost that his power rested only on his success in arms. The wild tribesmen, angry
and indignant at their ill fortune, turned upon their chief and deposed him, just as the
fierce Zaporojian Cossacks would have pulled down an unsuccessful hetman. Across the
ever-widening gulf of centuries one may still see the unhappy chieftain, a reproach to
his people, his ambitions in the dust, allowed to live, in all probability, only because of
his princely family. " The face of his brothers was hostile to slay him, one fought
another among his leaders. . . . When he arrived in his country, he was the complaint
of every one in his land. Ashamed he bowed himself down, an evil fate removed his
1 This last item, together with the notice of the Libyan archers throwing down their bows in flight (BAR iii. § 609),
shows how inaccurate W. M. F. Petrie, op. cit. vol. iii. p. 109, is in his account of the battle. "There are no bows stated
among the Libyan spoil, and they seem to have relied wholly on hand-to-hand fighting and chariots," says Petrie, and
goes on to compare this battle with the "parallel victory" obtained by the exarch Narses over the Franks at Casilinum.
2 BAR iii. § 584 : " Lo, the wretched chief of Libya was in speed to flee by himself." '
8 BAR iii. § 610.
4 Mentioned later by Rameses III., BAR iii. § 586. Perhaps in the Wady Natrun. '6 BAR he. cit.
HISTORY 219
plume. They all spoke against him, the inhabitants of his city : ' He is in the power
of the gods, the lords of Memphis ; the lord of Egypt has cursed his name Meryey, the
Abomination of Memphis, from son to son of his family, forever.' " x The unfortunate
chief heard on all sides the praises of his enemy the Pharaoh. Merneptah became " a
proverb in Libya ; the youth say to youth, concerning his victories : ' It has not been
done to us before since the time of Ra,' say they. Every old man says to his son, ' Alas
for Libya ! ' The tribesmen " ceased to live in the pleasant fashion of walking in the
field ; their going about was stopped in a single day ; . . . their settlements " were
" desolated," and they said " concealment is good ; there is safety in a cavern." 2
In Egypt, on the other hand, intense relief was felt. There was a general national
enthusiasm for Merneptah and gratitude to him. No more was there any " uplifting of
a shout in the night : ' Stop ! Behold one comes, one comes with the speech of
strangers ! ' . . . The towers are settled again anew," continues the Israel stela ; " as for
the one that ploweth his harvest, he shall eat it."
It seems almost as if Merneptah followed up his great victory with punitive
expeditions of some sort. At least he appears to have secured a tribute from his
enemies, 3 and he is said to have "penetrated the land of Temeh." 4 In the Athribis
stela, also, Merneptah is mentioned as making the Libyan " camps into wastes of the
Red Land, taking . . . every herb that came forth from their fields," so that " no field
grew," and " the families of Libya " were scattered " like mice upon the dikes." 5
Whether we are to accept or not as a fact a retributive invasion of Libya does not much
matter ; the Egyptians were content with their triumph over the invaders, and the
absence of more detailed information shows clearly that, even if bodies of Egyptian
troops did harry the neighbouring Libyans, the expeditions were small and not in the
nature of a counter invasion vigorous enough to drive the Rebu back upon their
western neighbours.
Yet so sure and decisive a repulse would in all likelihood have been effective in
preventing the Libyans from making another attempt against Egypt for a long time
had not the affairs of the country fallen into confusion on the death of Merneptah.
Merneptah's reign was followed by a period during which the power of the empire was
weakened by obscure quarrels and the decay of military spirit. The latter is clearly
indicated by the manner in which the peaceful occupations of the scribe were exalted in
the literature of the day at the expense of the military life, 6 and was one of the main
reasons why the Libyans were emboldened again to attempt to enter the Nile Valley
by force of arms. Unfortunately for them, the attempt was too long deferred ; when
1 BARiii. §610. 2 BAR Hi. §611.
3 Cf. BAR iii. § 591, where mention is made of yearly tribute. 4 BAR iii. § 608. ■
5 Cf. BAR iii. § 598. In the concluding simile I have altered the position of the words. Breasted has "upon the
dikes like mice," which is the literal order.
8 Anastasz Papyrus iii. pi. v. 1. 5, pi. vi. 1. 2 ; Anastasi Papyrus iv. pi. ix. 1. 4, pi. x. 1. 1 ; G. Maspero, The Struggle
of the Nations, p. 457 sq. ; A. Erman, Agypten und agyptisches Leben, p. 722 ; idem, Hieratische Ostraka in the Zeitschr.
filr a'gypt. Sprache, 1880, p. 96 sq.
220 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
it was put into effect, the XXth Dynasty had been inaugurated under the energetic
Setnakht, 1 to whom succeeded a powerful and ambitious ruler, Rameses III. Already
the regeneration of the country had begun. The scribes, whose temper suggest so
strongly those of their successors in modern Egypt, had had to take again a position
secondary to that of the soldiery on whom the welfare of the country depended.
The materials for the Libyan wars of Rameses III. are copious, but unsatisfactory.
Of our chief sources, the Medinet Habu inscriptions are so overladen with metaphor and
strained imagery, 2 and are so inconsequent, that even a scholar of Breasted's experience is
forced to say that his " translation as a whole is exceedingly unsatisfactory to the
author " ; 3 while the account given in the Papyrus Harris, as was long ago recognized,
attempts to summarize the first and second wars in a single narrative. 4 Fortunately,
however, we are able to trace the main features of both wars, and to see in them an
extraordinary parallel to the time of Merneptah.
The first Libyan war of Rameses III. befell in the fifth year of his reign, some two
decades after the Merneptah invasion. As in the accounts of that struggle, so here also
the narratives show that the invasion was preceded by casual penetration or by raids —
" the land had been exposed in continual extremity since the [former] kings " ; 5 " the
Libyans and the Meshwesh were dwelling in Egypt, having plundered the cities of the
western shore." 6 Immigration across the western frontier of the Delta had again
begun ; bands of Libyan robbers wandered among the towns from the vicinity of
Memphis to the Mediterranean, or possessed themselves of the fields along the Canopic
branch of the Nile. 7 While this tentative advance was being made on the easternmost
border of Libya, and while Setnakht and Rameses III. were bringing order out of the
chaos in the Nile Valley, in Syria and Asia were happening events which finally resulted
in the spurring on of the Libyans to repeat the attempt they had made under Meryey
a score of years before. Grave ethnic disturbances in the north were forcing more and
more of the older inhabitants to the south. In particular, two peoples appeared, who,
while not strong enough to withstand the pressure behind them, were nevertheless both
of formidable strength : the Thekel and the Peleset, the latter being the Philistines
of the Bible, who had before been settled in Crete. Together with the bands of
Denyen, Weshesh, Shekelesh, and Sherden, the Thekel and Peleset had begun to drift
toward the south and east. As they moved southward in Syria, the more venturesome
of their leaders began to coast along the Delta, and to enter the river-mouths on piratical
expeditions. As was natural, they readily fell into the plans of the North African
1 Manetho begins the XXth Dynasty with Rameses III.; but see J. H. Breasted, A History of Ancient Egypt, p. 600
sqq., and BAR i. § 69.
2 BARiv. §21. s BAR iv< 1 36 _
4 G. Maspero, of. cit. p. 4.59, note 3 ; F. Chabas, Etudes sur I'antiquite historique, p. 230 sqq. ; idem, Recherches pour
servir a I'histoire de la XIX dynastie, p. 5 2 sq.
6 BAR iv. §40; cf. 52, "The land of Temeh, Seped, and Meshwesh, who were robbers plundering Egypt
every day."
6 BAR iv. § 405. 7 BAR iv. §§ 40, 405 ; J. H. Breasted, op. cit. p. 474 sq.
HISTORY 221
leaders to invade and plunder Egypt, 1 and the presence of these new allies gave to the
Libyans just that stimulus which was needed to rekindle those ambitions which
Merneptah had subdued.
The great chief Meryey, son of Ded, had been set aside after his defeat, and
one of his brothers put in his place. In the record of the first invasion under
Rameses III., it is stated that the Pharaoh triumphed over Ded, Meshken, Meryey and
Wermer, Themer, and every hostile chief "who crossed the border of Egypt from
Libya." 2 The occurrence here, so long after the battle of Perire, of the names of Ded
and Meryey is certainly remarkable. Either the names are those of the original
invaders, returned again after twenty years, or of other chieftains descended from them ;
or they may have been here inserted by the compiler of the later record, who took
them out of the Merneptah account for the greater glorification of Rameses III. The
first hypothesis, though supported by Maspero, 3 is hardly possible ; for in Merneptah's
time Meryey had six grown sons, and if he were then but forty and his father but sixty,
it is hardly likely that we should find them again taking the field at the ages of sixty
and eighty respectively. The second hypothesis is one which cannot be disproved,
but which is much to be suspected from the fact that the only two chieftains named
in the Merneptah records should be represented by another pair bearing the same names
twenty years afterward. The third possibility, which is the most probable when is
considered the easy accessibility of the earlier records to the maker of the later one,
is that which Breasted tacitly admits when he supposes that, as given in the notice
above cited, the Libyan chiefs are listed in chronological order. 4 If Ded and Meryey
are introduced into the Rameses record in a spirit of reminiscence, and if Breasted
is right in believing that the names are given in chronological order, the succession
of the great chiefs of Libya would be as follows : —
i. Ded.
2. Meshken.
3. Meryey. (Deposed.)
4. Wermer. (Contemporary of Seti II., etc.)
5. Themer. (Leader of Second Invasion. 5 )
1 J. H. Breasted, op. cit. p. 477 sq., for these particulars. 2 BAR iv. § 43.
8 G. Maspero, The Struggle of the Nations, p. 456.
4 BAR iv. § 43, note b, ad loc. cit. ; J. H. Breasted, op. cit. p. 478.
5 The only certain family relations traceable from the Merneptah records as existing among the chiefs are thus
indicated : —
DED
MERYEY Son Son (or Sons)
(succeeded Meryey) (brothers of Meryey
Son Son Son Son Son Son
(all slain at Perire).
slain at Perire).
The necessary filiations for Meshken, Wermer, and Themer do not exist.
222 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
This debatable ground may be left, however, for the firmer one of the history
of the invasions which took place under Rameses III., which may be taken up at the
moment of the union of the Thekel and the Peleset with the Libyans against Egypt.
As usual, there was a general muster of the tribesmen ; " the land of Temeh " came
"together in one place in Libya." 1 The assembled Rebu, Meshwesh, and Seped 2
moved eastward to unite with their sea-roving allies, and with those Libyans already
settled in the Egyptian Delta, on the friendship of whom they could doubtless count.
When joined with the latter, and with the Thekel and Peleset pirates, they could not,
to judge from the numbers they eventually lost, have been much under 30,000 strong.
Having joined forces, the invaders began to plunder and lay waste the countryside.
The pirates, probably with an eye to securing their share of the booty, landed a large
part of their crews, and served as "warriors upon land" as well as "in the sea." 3
Those of the allies who remained on shipboard " entered into the river-mouths . . .
like wild-fowl creeping into a net." i Gradually working their way south along the
Canopic arm of the Nile, the Libyans and their allies sacked the towns of the western
Delta from Kerben south to Memphis. 5 The resistance had been slight ; the invaders,
moreover, had been near to the sea and the coast-road into Libya, and so were in touch
with their kinsmen. They became, as is the wont with ill-organized bodies in success,
careless and over-confident ; they began " sitting in Egypt," 6 apparently like so many
colonists. Themer and his captains may even have considered their aim as practically
accomplished, when, like a thunderbolt, the army of the warlike Pharaoh burst upon
them. The defeat was utter, and was attended by a carnage in which over 12,000
of the invaders fell, 7 a large proportion of the slain being the sea-rovers. About 1000
of the allies were made captive. 8 The Egyptian king, personally present at the action,
pursued the flying tribesmen in his chariot, accompanied by his mercenary archers
and swordsmen. 9 The wretched Thekel and Peleset on the river fared no better than
those on shore ; their ships were boarded and carried by the Egyptians — they had
indeed " crept into a net." In commemoration of this triumph the site of it was by
the royal annalists named Usermare-Meriamon-is-Chastiser-of-Temeb.
The captive allies, " with their women and children, like the ten thousand," 10
were branded with the king's name and put to serve as auxiliary troops, 11 or given
to be slaves in the temples. 12 What became of Themer is not known ; but groups
1 BAR iv. § 40.
2 BAR iv. § 40 and note d, ad he; cf. § 52. That the Seped and Esbet may be the same tribe has been
mentioned in the chapter on ethnogeography.
3 BAR iv. § 44 ; cf. W. M. Muller, Aslen und Europa, p. 360, note 4.
4 BAR he. cit.
■' BAR iv. §405. Kerben may have been the site near Abukir known in classical times as Heracletum — the Karbaniti
of the records of Assurbanipal. H. Brugsch, Dictionnaire geographique, p. 854 sq. ; and BAR, note g, loc. cit.
6 BAR loc. cit. 7 BAR §§ iv. 52 ; 53, and note c. s BAR iv. § 54.
9 Scenes at Medinet Habu, mentioned by BAR §§ iv. 50, 51. The auxiliaries were Sherden.
10 BAR iv. § 405. 11 BAR he. cit., also iv. § 43, and cf. §§ 402, 403.
12 Cf. BAR iv. §§ 190, 213, 359 for this giving of captives as temple slaves.
HISTORY 223
of his " tens," or councillors, were among the prisoners brought before the king. 1
Well might the Pharaoh boast : " I overthrew those who invaded my boundary,
prostrated in their place. ... I laid low the land of Temeh. . . . The Meshwesh,
they crouch down for fear of me." 2 The broken remnants of the invaders, it is
evident, would have been only too glad to rest peaceably in their own lands 3 after this
rough handling. Unhappily for them, they were not allowed to do so.
It will be remembered that, in the Merneptah invasion, the Rebu fell upon the
Tehenu, and forced the latter to accompany them against Egypt. Six years after
the first victory of Rameses III. a parallel proceeding was put in execution by the
Meshwesh. This people, situated to the west of the Rebu, does not appear to have
been active in the Libyan-Egyptian wars before the XXth Dynasty. In the Merneptah
invasions they are indeed mentioned, and a number of their copper swords have been
enumerated among the booty taken from the Libyans. It is in the first Libyan war
of Rameses III., however, that the Meshwesh themselves are seen for the first time
definitely and in large numbers among the Libyan invaders as allies of the Rebu.
After the defeat of the latter, the Meshwesh seem to have been but ill content with
the turn of affairs, and to have had a contempt for their eastern neighbours. At all
events, they had no scruple in taking advantage of the weakened state of the tribes
between them and Egypt. Under Kepper and his son Meshesher, they suddenly fell
upon the Rebu and Tehenu, and overcame them. " The chief of Meshwesh . . .
went to one place, his land with him, and invaded the Tehenu, who were made ashes,
spoiled and desolated were their cities, their seed was not." 4 This victory would
have been well enough had not the conquerors been spurred on by it to attempt
a greater and more difficult venture. Full of confidence from their success, and
conscious of their superiority in arms, they readily gave ear to the tales told them
by the vanquished Rebu and Tehenu of the richness and accessibility of the Delta.
It may be that the Rebu, anxious to rid themselves of these new masters, deliberately
encouraged them to undertake the old quest on which they had themselves failed.
The subject Rebu would have argued that either the Meshwesh would succeed in
overcoming the Egyptians, in which case Libya would be relieved from this new
oppression, and that an old score would be wiped out, or that, in case of defeat,
the Meshwesh would lose so heavily that they would be more manageable masters.
At all events, there is no doubt that they advised marching against Egypt, advice
which the Meshwesh took to their cost, and recalled bitterly afterward, when they said :
" Libya has misled us like. . . . We hearkened to their counsels." 5
1 BAR iv. § 42, and note c, ad he. cit. 2 BAR iv. § 58.
3 There is no reason to suppose Rameses carried war into Libya, unless weight is to be attached to the phrase
" my flame consumed their towns," attributed by the Medinet Habu inscription to the king. BAR iv. § 54.
4 BAR iv. § 87. Though the text has " Tehenu," it is safe to assume that this general term was meant to embrace the
Rebu, the immediate neighbours of the Meshwesh on the east.
5 BAR iv. §91.
224 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
A confederation of the usual sort was formed, 1 five tribes, the Esbet, Shai (Shaitep ?),
Beken, Keykesh, and Hes, being mentioned 2 as among the allies. It is possible that an
understanding of some sort was arrived at with the Amorites of Syria, since the Libyan
invasion and the Amorite war of the eleventh year of Rameses III. came close together, 3
and one of the Medinet Habu reliefs shows the Pharaoh leading the king of Amor and
the Great Chief of Libya together before Amon. 4 Such an understanding could easily
have been brought about through the agency of the Thekel, who were of the allies of
the Libyans in the war of the year 5, and who not only fought against Egypt in Syria, 5
but who even had towns there, such as Dor, 6 and plenty of ships. 7
Be this as it may, the Libyan force began to advance late in the year, fully bent upon
occupying the enemy's country, " saying," in the words of the record, " we will settle in
Egypt. So spake they with one accord, and they continually entered the boundaries of
Egypt," 8 with a view, doubtless, of marauding and of testing the enemy's strength. The
main body of the invaders seems to have met with no serious opposition until it arrived at
the stronghold of Hatsho, 9 which they began to invest. 10 This was the moment chosen
by Rameses, who with his archery and chariotry suddenly appeared before his fortress to
relieve it. 11 The archers marched in the van, supported by heavy infantry that waited
before charging until the bowmen had broken the ranks of the enemy. 12 The Meshwesh
and other tribesmen found themselves as unable to cope with the Egyptians as had been
their predecessors. Pressed by the army and exposed to a galling fire from the fortress,
beneath the walls of which they were attacked, they broke and fled, being pursued from
Hatsho to the town of Usermare-Meriamon, which was upon the " Mount of the Horns
of the Earth." There were made " eight iters of butchery among them." 13
The unfortunate Kepper was taken captive ; "he came to salam ; ... he laid down
his arms, together with his soldiers. He cried to heaven to beseech his son " 14 for help —
vainly, for Meshesher was slain on the field, 15 together with the old chieftain's wife and
family. 16 The total number of the slain was 2175. 17 The living captives, 2025 in
number, were thus itemized in the account given by the Medinet Habu reliefs : —
1 BAR iv. § 85. Undoubtedly the Rebu and Tehenu participated. That only the Meshwesh appear in the Egyptian
list of captives is due to the application by the Egyptian scribes of the name of the contingent dominant among the
allies, rather than to a defection of the non-Meshwesh allies in the battle of Hatsho.
2 BAR iv. § 405. 3 BAR iv. § 133.
4 BAR iv. § 1 26. The text with this scene is, " Utterance of the wretched chief of Amor, and the wretched vanquished
chief of Libya, 'Breath !"' BAR iv. §127.
5 BAR iv. § 64. With the Peleset, etc. 6 BAR iv. § 565, "Dor, a city of Thekel."
7 BAR iv. § 588, where eleven Thekel sail are mentioned as lying off Byblus.
s BAR iv. § 88.
9 Some eleven miles from the desert (cf. BAR iv. § 83 and note b, ad he.). Cf. the 8 iters pursuit from Hatsho to the
"Mount of the Horns of the Earth " (BAR iv. § 102). Hatsho was situated by the canal called "The Waters of Re"
(cf. BAR iv. § 83 and note a, ad he. ; § 224 and note d, ad he). For the length of the iter see BAR ii. § 965, note a, ad he.
10 Cf. BAR iv. §§ 102, 107. " Cf. BAR iv. § 107. Scene at Medinet Habu.
12 BAR iv. § 106. Scene at Medinet Habu.
15 BAR iv. § 102.
u BAR iv. § 97. 15 BAR iv. §§ 90, 100, 103.
16 BAR iv. § 103. 17 BARiv. §§ 106, 111.
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HISTORY
225
The captivity which the mighty sword of Pharaoh, L.P.H., carried away from the vanquished of
the Meshwesh : —
Chiefs of the Meshwesh
Chieftains of the . . . enemy
Meshwesh .
Youths
Boys
Total
Their wives
Maids
Girls
Total
Total of the mighty sword of Pharaoh, as living captives
The captured spoil was as follows : —
Cattle, bulls .
Swords of 5 cubits length
Swords of 3 cubits length
Bows
Chariots
Quivers
Spears
Horses of Meshwesh and asses
I
man.
5
men. 1
1205
men.
152
131
1494
342
women.
65
l S*
558
2
2052
various persons
119
(+ *)
"5
124
603
93
(? to 99)
2310
92
183
J
The prisoners were branded with the king's name, and made to serve as auxiliaries ; 4
nearly a thousand were assigned to care for a temple herd grandiosely called " Usermare-
Meriamon-L.P.H.-is-the-Conqueror-of-the-Meshwesh-at-the-Waters-of-Re " ; 5 and in
commemoration of this victory, which took place in the middle of the twelfth month of
the king's eleventh year, Rameses established an annual festival called in the temple
calendar " Slaying the Meshwesh." 6
This was the outcome of the last of the great Libyan militant invasions. The
triumph of the king had spread the terror of his name as far as " the Great Bend," 7 and
the Libyans must have been convinced that they could not cope with the Egyptians
in war.
As before the invasions, however, the Libyans continued to drift gradually eastward
into the Delta, singly, in small groups, or in families, and rose eventually, as will be seen,
to hold the supreme power. But before those events, which belong rather to Egyptian
than to Libyan history, it is necessary first to consider the cause of all this easterly move-
1 Were these the chiefs of the five tribes mentioned above ?
2 BAR iv. § 1 1 1. From these data it may be assumed that the invading force was at least 10,000 strong.
3 BAR he. at. " BAR iv. §405. 5 BAR iv. § 224. 6 BAR iv. § 145.
7 BAR iv. § no. This locality is probably not to be identified with the Catabathmus Major, since both Rebu and
Meshwesh lived west of that point. Rather it is the southerly curve of the Cyrenaic coast, entering the Syrtis Major.
2 G
226 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
ment of the Libyans — a movement of which the great invasions just recorded were
simply the most striking manifestations within our historical horizon.
If the Libyan campaign of Seti I. be regarded as the first indication of a general
easterly movement of the populations of Eastern Libya, the invasions may be said,
broadly, to have occupied the twelfth century B.C. This was an epoch which saw the
later and final manifestations of a great ethnic movement in Europe. The southern
shifting of the Syrian peoples with whom the Thekel and Peleset were associated has
been mentioned already ; about 1300 b.c. the Cretan thalassocracy, and, a century later,
about 1200 b.c, the late Minoan power itself came to a violent close. Many island and
coastwise people, taking refuge in sea-craft which their invaders did not possess, became,
piratical adventurers like the Peleset. Some of these people, driven from their homes,
seized small ports and held them, as the Thekel held the town of Dor. It was a period
when, in the Eastern Mediterranean, whole peoples, split up into small groups, were
seeking to re-establish themselves in new homes. Such a re-establishment, it may be
supposed, resulted in the Carian sea-power of the tenth and ninth centuries B.C. In
the west the twelfth century was marked by the introduction of iron into Italy, and
about this time the Venetes and Illyrians reached the Adriatic. The Tyrrhenians entered
Italy, and pushed before them the Italiot Umbro-Latins. These in turn drove out the
Sicels, 1 who, in the Egyptian records already quoted, appear as the Shekelesh. In Spain
the firing or abandonment of the sites inhabited in the Bronze Age 2 commemorate
the advent of powerful iron-using peoples at this time. In short, all southern Europe
and Asia Minor felt the force of the ethnic thrust that pushed the Thracians into the
Balkans. 3 The dispossessed heirs of the bronze culture could find a home nowhere if
not in Africa, a country eminently habitable, held by a weak neolithic or partially
aeneolithic people, and cut off by the sea from the invaders. Large masses of wanderers
driven from southern Europe crossed to the opposite continent, particularly, it is reason-
able to suppose, in the parts approaching most nearly to Spain and Italy. The landing of
a large body of immigrants in the region which is now Marocco, Algeria, and Tunisia,
and the presence along the coast of rapacious Sherden, Peleset, Thekel, etc., would
naturally produce an ethnic disturbance of some magnitude. This would take the form
of an easterly or westerly movement, the desert nature of the interior putting a southerly
one practically out of the question ; and of the two directions the easterly would be the
more likely, as in the west new arrivals were pressing in from the Iberian Peninsula,
and as the region east of Tunisia is less mountainous and difficult to traverse than the
Atlas belt on the west. Probably a movement from Africa Minor toward Egypt was
inaugurated as early as 1300 b.c It was accelerated by the arrival at various points of
detached bodies of sea-peoples, whose arrival was commemorated in later times by legends
such as that which said the Maxyes were of Trojan origin. 4 Armed with superior
1 J. Deniker, The Races of Man, p. 315 sqq., 321. "- L. Siret, U Espagne pr'ehistorique, p. 73.
s J. Deniker, op. cit. p. 321. i Herodotus iv. 191.
HISTORY 227
weapons and more advanced in civilization than the indigenous North Africans, the new
arrivals expanded rapidly. An insistent ethnic pressure began to have its effects in the
east. Seti I. and Rameses II. felt the force of it in Egypt, and cut off the head of the
advancing column. Then the Rebu, pressed on the west, fell on their eastern neighbours
and attempted the invasion which was checked by Merneptah. Again a convulsive west-
to-east movement — the disastrous invasion in the year 5 of Rameses III. — was blocked by
the Egyptians, and again a tribe advancing from the west — the Meshwesh — fell in upon
their eastern neighbours, and attempted vainly to establish themselves in Egypt. Such
a succession of wars, and the events by which, as will be sbown later, it was followed,
can be explained only by the facts just outlined ; by the arrival of new and powerful ethnic
elements in the vicinity of those parts of Africa lying opposite Spain and Italy. The
Libyan invasions, it will have been noticed, were accompanied by numbers of women and
children, 1 and were animated by a colonizing spirit. They were, briefly, not invasions in
the ordinary sense, but waves of a migration which had been set in motion in the west.
The armed migrations terminated with the battle of Hatsho ; the impulse which
had caused them remained. Under the immediate successors of Rameses III. went on
a steady and persistent infiltration of Libyan immigrants into the Delta ; under " the
weak and inglorious XXIst Dynasty " 2 these families in some cases became powerful.
At the beginning of this chapter the first period of Libyan history was set as extending
roughly to 1000 B.C., the time by which the invasions or militant migrations had come to
an end. It was about this time that the peaceful penetration of the Delta was taking place.
In order, however, to understand what was happening at this period, it is necessary
to consider some of the later phases of New Empire history in which the obscure
immigrants of the eleventh century are seen more clearly in the light of the power they
came to attain. For the study of this point there most fortunately remain the records of an
immigrant family which may be regarded as typical, the family of the Libyan Buyuwawa. 3
1 That more women and children are not mentioned in the Egyptian annals is perhaps due to the fact that their
enumeration would not redound especially to the credit of their victors, and perhaps because the majority of the non-
combatant Libyans were left in the rear of the militant bodies, awaiting the conclusion of the campaigns.
2 J. H. Breasted, op. cit. p. 527.
3 The genealogy of the family is contained in the Serapeum stela of Harpeson, BAR iv. § 787 sqq. Buyuwawa
is there called Tehen- Buyuwawa. Twenty years ago P. le P. Renouf, Who were the Libyans? p. 602,
inspired by Oppert, in Congr. Intern, des Orient., Paris, 1873, vol. ii. p. 183 sqq., tried to interpret the name
\ § ^ Jj % (j(j % £) "^\® tkn-bwywwl differently, rendering the word | | f¥¥^i t A 11 as " bright," "shining."
He cited \ 8 >/ rfffh - fl t h n -If, ka/j-vrpo^aviji, from the titulary of Rameses III., and Tj^y 1 O Y\ -^ Jq
thn hprtu w r b y'j, "splendid of forms, great in marvellous works," from the titulary of Amenhotep III. as
parallels. Renouf on these grounds claimed that Tehen-Buyuwawa, "Radiant" or "Illustrious" Buyuwawa, was a
compound name like Aafnrpoirovs, or Longimanus. Recent scholarship has rejected this explanation, though W. M. F.
Petrie, A History of Egypt, vol. iii. p. 231 sq., has not only accepted it, but also reissued Oppert's etymologies for the
names of this family — e.g. Sheshonk ( TtTtT JYJYT W ^ W ) " man of Shushan " ; Nemareth (thus reading jk 4? \ or
7" _Jk I %) = nimr, Ar. ^ " the leopard " ; Takerat ( ) = " perhaps from the Zend, tighri, the tiger,"
etc. Vide BAR, loc. cit., and J. H. Breasted, op. cit. p. 526.
228 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Early in the XXth Dynasty a Tehen-Libyan of this name settled in Heracleopolis.
His son Musen became priest of the Heracleopolitan temple, and held command of the
town's mercenary soldiers. Both these offices became hereditary in the family, which
steadily increased in influence, and which became more and more Egyptiamzed as it
advanced in power.
Buyuwawa's great-great-grandson, Sheshonk, " great chief of the Meshwesh," was
able, when he found that part of the rich endowment he had provided for the upkeep
of his son's mortuary service had been misappropriated, to interest one of the XXIst
Dynasty kings in his behalf, and to secure a decision in his favour from the Theban
Anion. 1 The grandson of this Sheshonk, who bore the same name, was first a local
magnate the extent of whose domains would have warranted his having been rated as a
prince. When the XXIst Dynasty had become naturally extinct, or too feeble to
continue its nerveless existence, this second Sheshonk removed from Heracleopolis
to Bubastis, and in 945 b.c. proclaimed himself Pharaoh. 2
Thus, in a little more than two centuries after the death of their arch-enemy,
Rameses III., the Libyans, having added to their natural hardihood the culture of the
civilized Egyptians, became without a struggle rulers of what was still the most powerful
empire in the Eastern Mediterranean. The genealogy of the house of Buyuwawa to the
accession of Sheshonk I. 8 is as follows ; the successors of that king belong rather to
Egyptian than to Libyan history : —
1. Buyuwawa.
I
2. Musen.
I
3. Nebneshi.
I
4. Pethut.
I
5. Sheshonk = Mehetnushet.
6. Namlot = Temsepeh.
7. King Sheshonk I. = Kerome.
The family from which sprang the XXIInd Dynasty kings was a typical one.
Evidence exists until late Egyptian times that many Libyan families were established
in the Delta, and while their fortunes did not rise as high as those of the house men-
tioned, they nevertheless produced a number of petty dynasts and princes, such as those
seen in the account of the northern revolt suppressed by the Aethiopian Piankhi in the
XXIIIrd Dynasty. 4 Such a local magnate appeared at the end of the Egyptian period in
the person of Inarus, whose brilliant but unsuccessful revolt against Artaxerxes I. will
be mentioned in due course.
1 BAR iv. § 669 sqq. « BAR iv. § 785 sqq.
3 BAR iv. § 787. * BAR iv. § 815 sqq. ; especially §§ 830, 878.
HISTORY 229
Period II
The main characteristic of this period is the gradual curtailment of the area
occupied by the Eastern Libyans, because of foreign colonization in Africa. To present
the scattered notices relating to the Libyans during this period in narrative form is scarcely
profitable, the events of which records remain being for the most part isolated and
unconnected with each other. All the significant material has therefore been cast in the
form of a rough chronicle. In this chronicle are inserted a number of events relating
only indirectly to Eastern Libya, yet of enough importance to warrant their being put
in. Such items are printed at the right of the page, the facts of East Libyan history
being given the full width.
Circa 1 1 75 b.c.
About this time the Egyptian oases were colonized by Rameses III. 1 Hargarh became for a
time a place of exile for Egyptian criminals. 2
Circa 935 b.c.
Sheshonlc I. sent to Dahlah, which, from the weakness of the XXIst Dynasty, " had been
found to be in a state of rebellion and desolate," a commissioner to restore and maintain order.
This commissioner was a priest of Diospolis Parva, a Libyan called Wayheset. 3
Circa 800 b.c.
About this time Carthage was founded. 4
763 B.C.
A Libyan, " the great chief of Rebu, great chief of Me[shwesh] Hetihenker," governor of the
Western Delta under Sheshonk III. 6
A Libyan, Weshtehet, serving as master-caravaneer to Sheshonk III. 6
Circa 700 b.c.
Carthaginian emporia established in the Syrtica Regio. By these factories trade with the interior
was stimulated, and the career of mercenary service was opened to Eastern Libyans. 7
Circa 639 B.c.
Greek colonists from Thera occupy Plataea (" Seal Island " in the Gulf of Bombah) in the
territory of the Giligamae. 8
Circa 637 b.c.
Greeks leave Plataea for Aziris on the adjacent main. 9
1 BAR i v. §213. 2 BAR iv. § 650 sqq. 3 BAR iv. § 726.
4 O. Meltzer, Geschichte der Karthager, vol. i. p. 90 sq. The factory of Cambe had already been established by the
Sidonians.
5 BAR iv. § 784 ; cf. § 783. 6 BAR hcc. citt.
7 Cf. C. Perroud, De Syrticis emporiis, p. 200.
s The date is 2 + 6 + 631, since the colonists spent two years on Plataea (Herodotus iv. 157), and six at Aziris before
going to Cyrene (Herodotus iv. 158), which they founded in 631 b.c. Plataea= " Seal Island" in the Gulf of Bombah,
and not, as many geographers have assumed, Burdah or Bombah Island, which is an uninhabitable rock.
9 Herodotus v. 157.
230 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Circa 631 b.c.
The Greeks leave Aziris at the instigation of the friendly Giligamae, who conduct them to a
point within the territories of the Asbystae, where they found Cyrene. 1
Circa 572 B.C. 2
The Cyrenaean Greeks are reinforced by fresh colonists. The Asbystae and their chief,
Adicran, " being robbed and insulted by the Cyreneans," send messengers to Egypt, and put
themselves under the rule of Apries [ = Ha-ab-ra = Hophra of the Bible], the Egyptian king, who
thereupon levies a vast army of Egyptians, and sends it against Cyrene. The inhabitants of that
place leave their walls and march out in force to the district of Irasa, where, near the spring called
Theste, they engage the Egyptian army and defeat it. 8
The results of this first conflict between the
Greeks and Egyptians, thus brought about by the
Libyans, were far-reaching. For Apries was
blamed for the defeat, and Amasis (Ahmose II.)
revolted and became first co-regent and then sole
king-
About this time, or a little before, the Ammonians, who lived under the rule of their own
princes, 4 become strongly Egyptianized, if not under direct Egyptian sway. The earliest architectural
remains in the oasis belong to this period, and are wholly Egyptian in character. A little later
Herodotus described the population as partly Egyptian. 5
Circa 550 b.c."
The brothers of Arcesilaus II., Perseus, Zacynthus, Aristomedon, and Lycus withdraw from
Cyrene with their adherents to Barca, a town in the territory of the Auschisae. This town they are
said by Herodotus 7 to have founded, but from its non-Greek name, and the circumstances attaching
to the story of the secession, it is almost certain that it was of native origin, ante-dating the arrival of
the Greeks, or that the Auschisae had a large share in building it. 8 The brothers fomented a Libyan
revolt against Cyrene. Arcesilaus marched against the rebels, who retreat eastward to a place called
Leucon. The Libyans there made a stand, and engaged the Cyrenaeans, defeating them so heavily
that the Greeks are said to have lost 7000 heavy-armed men. 9
Circa 525-524 B.C.
Cambyses III. accepts tribute from the Libyans of Marmarica. 10
1 Herodotus iv. 158. For the date cf. Theophrastus, Hist, plant, vi. 8. 3, as against Solinus xxvii. 44, where
the date is given as 597.
2 For the date 631 -40- 16 - x, x being < 6; for Battus I. ruled in Cyrene forty years, and his successor
Arcesilaus I. ruled sixteen (Herodotus iv. 159), 63 1 - (40 + 16) = 575 =accession of Battus II. A little time must be
allowed for the renewed colonizing activity which led Adicran to call in Apries ; hence, as Apries was killed in 569 b.c,
the Egyptian expedition must have been between circa 573 and 569. But Amasis, after the expedition and before the
murder of Apries, ruled with the latter at least two years (W. M. F. Petrie, History of Egypt, iii. p. 350 sq.), so that the
date of the expedition falls within the narrow limits of circa 573-571 b.c.
8 Herodotus iv. 159. Cf. A. Wiedemam, Geschkhte Agyptens von Psammetkh, i. etc., p. 165.
4 The names of three of these were copied by G. SteindorfF who gives them (in transcription only) in his Durch die
libyschen Wilste zur Amonsoase. They there appear as " Set-erdai's, Great Chief of Foreign Lands," son of " Retneb " (same
title — -p. 118); and as " Un-Amon " (same title) son of " Nefret-ronpet " (p. 121). The "Etearchus" of Herodotus
probably belonged to the first half of the fifth century b.c
5 Herodotus ii. 32. And, in part, Aethiopian. But by "Aethiopian" Herodotus may here intend Libyan, Greek
writers occasionally confusing the two.
6 I.e. some years after the accession of Arcesilaus II. Chalepus. "' Herodotus iv. 160.
8 I have already remarked on the native character of Barca in the preceding chapter (p. 177, note 4), citing Polyaenus,
Strateg. viii. 47. See too p. 231, note 3.
9 Herodotus, loc. cit. 10 Ibid. iii. 13. The tribute of the Cyreneans was thought insultingly small.
HISTORY 231
Cambyses III. despatches against Ammonium an army said to have consisted of 50,000 men.
The army proceeded from the Nile, via Hargah. What afterward happened is not clearly known.
The army apparently reached Hargah in safety, and left for Siwah. At the latter place it never
arrived, local legend reporting that while halting on the road it was overwhelmed by a sandstorm. 1
Circa 517 b.c.
The Carthaginians and the Macae drive out the Doric Greeks who had established themselves
at the mouth of the Cinyps River. 2
Circa 515 b.c.
Alazir, 3 king of Barca, and his son-in-law, Arcesilaus III., murdered. Pheritime, mother of
Arcesilaus, seeks and obtains help from Aryandes, satrap of Egypt. Aryandes besieges Barca,
which he takes by treachery, penetrates to Euhesperis, and then returns to Egypt. On the way
back the Persians are harassed by the Libyans, who cut off stragglers for the sake of their accoutre-
ments. The captive Barceans are settled in Asia. 4
Circa 500 b.c.
Ammonium and the Egyptian oases thoroughly subjected to Persia. Darius I. begins his
temple at Hargah.
480 B.C.
Large Libyan contingent in the army of Xerxes. 6
460-454 B.C.
Inarus, son of Psammetichus, a Libyan dynast of the Western Delta, revolts from Persia, with
the support of the Mareotic Libyans, and perhaps of Cyrene. 6 Aided by the Athenians, who send
their fleet from Cyprus, Inarus defeats the Persians in a pitched battle in which he slays Achaemenes,
the satrap, with his own hand. He besieges Memphis unsuccessfully, and is forced to withdraw to
Papremis. Finally, he is captured and crucified.
In accordance with a not uncommon Persian
policy, his son, Thanyras, is installed in his stead. 7
Circa 450 b.c
The Nasamones fall upon the Psylli, destroy many of them, and force the remainder away from
the Syrtic coast. 8
1 Herodotus iii. 17, 25, 26 ; cf. Diodorus Siculus x. 13 ; Justin i. 9. 3. This expedition may have been directed by
Cambyses, who obviously had but a poor knowledge of the desert, against Cyrene as an ultimate objective. Vide supra,
p. 174 sq. 2 Cf. C. Perroud, De Syrticis emporiis, p. 155.
3 The name'AAaftp (Herodotus iv. 164), belonging to a king of Barca, is further evidence of the Libyan character
of that city. The name is obviously that seen as AAAAAEIP in an inscription (CIG 5147). A Cyrenaic tile-stamp
found at Cyrene by the American Expedition (reproduced in Bull. Arch. Inst. America, vol. ii. no. 4, pi. xiv.) seems also
to exhibit this name, though no one has chanced to remark it. The stamp as copied is
HAA
IZ
, and the reading
suggested is AAEZH. The spacing calls for one more letter, which permits one to restore the name as AAEZH(P).
4 Herodotus iv. 164 sqq., 200 sqq.
5 Ibid. vii. 184. 6 Cf. Pindar, Pyth. iv. 53-56.
7 Ctesias, Frag. 29 § 32 ; Thucydides i. 103, 104 ; Diodorus Siculus xi. 71 sqq. ; Herodotus iii. 12, vii. 7.
8 The date must lie between the times of Hecataeus and of Herodotus, since the former calls the Gulf of Kebrit the
Psyllic Gulf; and by the time of the latter the Psylli had not only been driven back from the coast, but a legendary
account of their removal had sprung up. It is Pliny (Hist. Nat. vii. 2) who has preserved the rational record of what took
place— haec gens [scil. the Psylli] ipsa quidem prope internicione sublata est a Nasamonibus, qui nunc eas tenent sedes.
232 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
413 B.C.
The Spartan Gylippus, on his way westward to the relief of Syracuse, puts into Euesperis from
stress of weather, and finds that city besieged by the. Libyans. With his aid, the natives are beaten
back. 1
Circa 390 b.c.
The Libyans of Barca make a treaty with Harcoris of Egypt. 2
Circa 331 B.C.
Alexander of Macedon conquers Egypt and visits Ammonium.
310-307 B.C.
Agathocles of Syracuse levies war on Carthage
in Africa, and is partly supported by the discon-
tented Libyans. In 308 b.c. Ophelias marches
across the coast-road from Cyrene to join Aga-
thocles, who slays him by treachery. 3
Circa 277 b.c.
Magas of Cyrene marches from Cyrene against Egypt, and reaches the town of Chi. 4 At that
point he learns that the Marmaridae have risen behind him and threaten to cut him off from his base.
He withdraws, and puts down the Libyans. 5
264-241 B.C.
First Punic War. Many African mercenaries
in the Carthaginian army. 6 Under Spendius and
Mathos, the Libyan, these eventually mutiny. 7
24O-237 B.C.
The mutiny develops into the African war 8 of
Carthage.
218 B.C.
The war continues. Scipio invades Africa,
where he obtains native support. 9
149-146 B.C.
Third Punic War ; Carthage destroyed.
I II B.C.
Ptolemy Apion bequeaths Cyrenaica to Rome.
1 Thucydides vii. 50.
2 Theopompus, Frag. 1 1 1 in FUG. vol. i. p. 295. C. Mttller here reads /3ap/3apov<; for the vulg. Bap/ccuoug.
3 Diodorus Siculus xx. 3. 3, xvii. 1 ; cf. lv. 4.
4 Polyaenus, Strateg. ii. 28. 2, Xi„ In Ptol. iv. 5 § 4, Xa or Xet/iw ; Stadiasmus Maris Magni, §§ 5, 6, Xi/wo.
6 For the date, J. P. Mahaffy, Empire of the Ptolemies, p. 124, note I.
6 Polybius i. 67. 7. 7 Ibid. i. 69. 6 ; cf. Diodorus Siculus xxv. 5. 2.
8 Polybius i. 70. 5 sqq. ; cf. H. Fournel, Les Berbers, vol. i. p. 46, and notes. 9 Livy xxii. 47.
HISTORY
2 33
Circa 87 b.c.
Phaedimus slain by Nicocrates, tyrant of
Cyrene, who then marries Aretaphile, widow of
Phaedimus. Aretaphile persuades Leander to kill
his brother Nicocrates, and Leander succeeds to
the tyranny, marrying Aretaphile.
The cruelty of Leander leads Aretaphile to conspire against him with Anabus, chief of a neigh-
bouring tribe. Anabus threatens rebellion, and at a conference with Leander has him strangled. 1
67 B.C.
Cyrenaica reduced to a Roman province. All the East Libyan littoral under Roman sway.
49 B.C.
Cato marches from Cyrene across the Syrtis. 2
35 B - c -
Outbreak in Roman Africa. 3
30 B.C.
Egypt a Roman province.
29 B.C.
Outbreak in Roman Africa. 4
21 B.C.
Outbreak in Roman Africa. 4
19 B.C.
Lucius Cornelius Balbus leads a successful punitive force into Phazania (Fezzan) against the
marauding Garamantes, of which expedition Pliny gives the following account : —
" ... beyond the Lesser Syrtis is the region of Phazania ; the nation of Phazanii belonging
to which, as well as the cities of Alele and Cilliba, we have subdued by force of arms, as also
Cydamus, which lies over against Sabrata. After passing these places a range of mountains extends
in a prolonged chain from east to west ; these have received from our people the name of Black
Mountains, either from the appearance which they naturally bear of having been exposed to the
action of fire, or else because they have been scorched by the sun's rays. Beyond it lies the desert,
and then Talgae, a city of the Garamantes, and Debris, . . . Garama, too, that most famous
capital of the Garamantes, all of which places have been subdued by the Roman arms. It was
on this occasion that Cornelius Balbus was honoured with a triumph. . . . Besides Cydamus and
Garama, there were carried in procession the names and models of all the other nations and
cities in the following order : 6 Tabudium, a town ; Niteris, a tribe [natio] ; the town of
Nigligemela, 6 the tribe or town of Bubeium, the tribe Enipi, the town Thuben, the mountain
1 Plutarch, De mulier. virtut. p. 255 sqq. ; cf. J. P. Thrige, Res Cyrenensium, p. 269 sqq.
2 Plutarch, Cato Minor', % 56 ; Lucan, Pharsalia, ix. 300/^.
3 Dio Cassius, Hist. Rom. xlix. 34.
4 H. Fournel, op. cit. p. 49, and note 4, sub-note d.
5 The order is probably that in which the towns were taken, and almost certainly a north to south one. The attempts
which have been made to identify these ancient names with those of modern sites in Fezzan are hardly convincing.
6 Nigligemela, though the current form of this name, is not the one preferred by Jahn, who reads Miglis Gemella.
If this lection is right, one is strongly tempted to see here a Semitic name — J^- ^Js?. Cf. in Assyria the Semitic
Yavyafi^Xa (Strabo xvi. p. 737).
2 H
234 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
known as the Black Mountain, Nitibrum, the towns called Rapsa, the tribe Discera, the town
Debris, the river Nathabur, the town Thapsagum, the tribe Nannagi, the town Boin, the town Pege,
the river Dasibari ; and then the towns in the following order, of Baracum, Buluba, Alasit, Galia,
Balla, Maxalla, Zigama, and Mount Gyri, which was preceded by an inscription stating that this was
the place where precious stones were produced." 1
6 B.C.
The Musulini and the Gaetuli defeated in
Western Libya by Cornelius CrassusJ
2
A.D. 17.
Revolt of Tacfarinas begins, and lasts till
a.d. 24, the scene of war shifting more and more
westward. 3
Circa a.d. 20.
P. Sulpicius Quirinius, proconsul of Creta-et-Cyrene, defeats the Marmaridae and the
Garamantes, the latter being, apparently, beaten near their own territory. 4
a.d. 40—42.
Revolt under Aedemon in the western Atlas,
put down by Suetonius Paulinus. 5
Raids in Numidia. 6
Circa a.d. 69.
Revolt of Oea and Leptis Magna in the reign of Vespasian. The towns are aided by the
Garamantes, who had been in the habit of defending themselves from attack by hiding their water-
holes. " Up to the present," writes Pliny, " it has been found impracticable to keep open the road
that leads to the country of the Garamantes, as the robber bands of that people have filled up the
wells with sand, which wells do not require to be digged to any great depth, if you but have
knowledge of the locality." 7
a.d. 86.
In the reign of Domitian, the Nasamones revolted, slew the Roman quaestors, and took the
camp of the praetor Flaccus. Finding a store of wine in the camp, however, they made themselves
drunk with it ; the camp was re-taken by Flaccus, and the Nasamones were put to the sword. s
Circa a.d. 100.
Christianity begins to be established along the
North African coast.
Septimius Flaccus penetrates to Aethiopia at the head of a Roman column.
Julius Maternus, marching from Leptis Magna to Garama, there joins forces with the
Garamantes, and proceeds southward against various Aethiopian bands. 9
1 Pliny v. 5. ' 2 Dio Cassius, Hist. Roman, Iv. 26 ; Orosius vi. 21.
3 Tacitus, Annal. ii. 52 ; iii. 21'; etc. * L. Annaeus Florus iv. 12, \\ (ii. 31) ; Jornandes, p. 1072 § 64.
6 Pliny v. I ; Dio Cassius lx. 1. 6 Dio Cassius, loc. cit.
7 Pliny v'. 5 ; Tacitus, Histor. iv. 50 ; Solinus xxx.
s Eusebius, Chronicon, p. 378 ; Zonaras, Annates, xi. 19 (p. 500).
a Marinus Tyrius ap. Ptolemy i. 8 § 4, . dnb Tapap;? dp.a rip /ifao-i/W tCov Tapap.dvTtav iTnp^ojxiv^ tois
KWioxj/iV oSeiWiTti to. irdi'Ta irpbs p.e<rr]p.[3p!av pirjcrl Tecrcrapcrt d(f>iKe<r8ai eis tt)v 'A.-y'urvp.fiu, ktX.
HISTORY 235
A.D. II5.
Great Judaic uprising in Cyrenaica. Massacre
of the Gentiles. 1
a.d. 117.
Revolts in the Atlas. 2
a.d. 122.
Hadrian visits Mauretania to re-establish
peace. 3
Between a.d. 138 and 161.
Reign of Antoninus : revolt in the west. The
Mauri, driven into the Atlas, sue for peace. 4
a.d. 170.
Serious revolts in west. The Mauri engage
the Romans not only in Africa, but in Spain.
They are eventually defeated on both sides of the
Straits. 5
a.d. 180-192.
New outbreaks in the west during reign of
Commodus. 6
a.d. 193.
Septimius Severus becomes Emperor. He was born at Leptis Magna, 7 and was therefore
conversant with the local conditions of Eastern Libya. " This prince," says Spartianus, " established
the complete security of Tripolis, where he was born, by the defeat of numerous warlike tribes." 8
a.d. 197.
Agrippinus, bishop of Carthage. 9
A.D. 200.
Martyrdom of the Scillitani. 10
Between a.d. 228 and 238.
Mauri repressed in the west by Furius Celsus. 11
In 238 elevation of Gordianus Pius at
Thysdrus. 12
1 Eusebius, Hist. Eccles. iv. 2. 2 ; Dio Cassius lxviii. 32. 5 ; S. Hieronymus, Chronicon, pp. 164, 165, 167 ; Orosius
vii. 12 § 6. The extent of this rebellion leads to the conclusion that many Berber converts to Judaism may have been
involved in it. According to Orosius, the mortality was so severe as to necessitate a recolonization of the Pentapolis
under Hadrian. Jews persisted in the Pentapolis into Christian times, their presence being noticed by Synesius,
Epist. 137. 2 Aelius Spartianus, Hadrianus 5. 3 Ibid. 12. 4 Julius Capitolinus, Antoninus Pius 5.
5 Idem, Marcus Aurelius philosophus 21. 6 Aelius Lampridius, Commodus 9, 13.
7 Eutropius, Breviar. ab urbe condita, viii. 18 ; Sext. Aurel. Victor, De Caesaribus 20; idem, Epitome 20; Aelius
Spartianus, Severus 1, 18.
8 Aelius Spartianus, Severus 18. 9 S. A. Morcelli, Africa Christiana, vol. ii. p. 44.
10 D. Ruinart, Acta martyrum sincera et select a, p. 73 sqq. ; idem, Hist, persecut. Vandal, p. 247 sq. ; S. A. Morcelli,
op. cit. vol. i. p. 50, vol. ii. p. 53. n Lampridius, Alexander Severus, 58.
12 Herodian, Ab excessu Divi Marci, vii. 4. 2, v. 3 ; Sext. Aurel. Victor, De Caesaribus 26 ; J. Capitolinus, Maximini
duo 13, 14.
236 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
A.D. 253.
Raiding in Numidia. 1
a.d. 256.
Council of African bishops at Carthage. 2
a.d. 261.
Raids of Faraxen finally put down by Gargilius. 3
A.D. 27O.
Probus, later Emperor, conducts a successful campaign against the Marmaridae. He marched,
according to Vopiscus, " from Libya to Carthage, where he quieted some uprisings. ... In
Africa he fought against a certain Aradion in a duel in which he came off victor." 4
The Palmyrene generals of Zenobia in Egypt
find allies in the Blemmyes, who come north from
above the First Cataract and soon overrun the
Thebaid. 5
a.d. 271.
Aurelian breaks the Palmyrene power in Egypt,
but the remnants of the forces of Zenobia,
together with the rebel Egyptians and the
Blemmyes, hold upper Egypt under Firmus. 6
During this period the Romans have also to engage bands of nomadic robbers who raid from
the Libyan desert. 7
Circa a.d. 292.
Diocletian calls in the Nobatae or Nobadae, a
tribe of the western desert, to occupy Nubia, and
defend the south Egyptian frontier against the
Blemmyes. 8
In the west, in the Jurjura Mts., breaks out
the rebellion of the Quinquegentes, which was
eventually crushed by Maximianus. 9
A.D. 32O-325.
Arianism begins to spread. 10
1 Sanctus Cyprianus, Epist. 60 in Op. Om. pp. 99, 100. St. Cyprian collected funds for the relief of the
plundered Christians of Numidia.
2 Idem, De haereticis rebaptizandis {Op. Om. p. 329).
6 Inscription from Sur el-Ghazlan in T. Shaw, Travels, etc., vol. i. p. 95 ; cf. L. Renier, Inscriptions romaines de
I'Jlgerie, p. 25, no. 101 ; and H. Fournel, Les Berbers, vol. i. p. 59. * Flavius Vopiscus, Probus 9.
5 Zosimus i. 44 ; Trebellius Pollio, Claudius II. ; Vopiscus, Firmus 2, 3. Cf. D. G. Hogarth, ap. W. M. F. Petrie
Koptos, p. 34.
Vopiscus, Jurelianus 32 ; Firmus 5. 7 Zosimus i. 70 ; Vopiscus, Probus 17.
8 Procopius, De bello Persico i. 19 ; cf. J. G. Milne, History of Egypt under Roman Rule, p. 86.
'* H. Fournel, op. cit. p. 60 and notes ; Sext. Aurel. Victor, Be Caesaribus, 39 ; Eutropius, op. at. ix. 22 ;
Zonaras, Annales, ii. p. 243 ; Auctor Incertus, Pancgyricus Maximiano et Constantino, viii. 6.
10 P. SchafF, History of the Christian Church, vol. iii. p. 360.
HISTORY 237
About this time a certain Armatius successfully engaged the Libyan marauders, but died of
sickness before achieving any decisive victory. 1
A.D. 372.
Revolt of Firmus, son of Nubel ; Count
Theodosius in Africa. Firmus proclaims himself
champion of the Donatists, and liberator of
Africa. Theodosius crushes the revolt, and is
himself rewarded with capital punishment under
Gratianus, a.d. 376. 2
Circa a.d. 390-410.
The Ausuriani or Austuriani, on the borders of Africa and the province of Libya, neighbours
of the Mazices, 3 having been for a time quiet, revolted. 4 They ravaged the vicinity of Leptis
Magna for three days, and continued to be active even into the reign of Valentinian. 5 About the
end of the fourth century they and the Mazices overran the Cyrenaic Pentapolis. The Mazices,
during the time of the indolent Strategus Cerealis, 6 actually laid siege to Cyrene itself. 7 The
philosopher-bishop Synesius was very active in the defence against these bands, and indeed the
Christians of the Pentapolis showed an exemplary degree of bravery in combating their invaders.
The clergy of Axomis, near Darnis, having news of a body of marauders who were looting in the
wooded valley of Myrtitis, marched forth with their peasant parishioners, and defeated the robbers
with slaughter. In that action, the deacon Faustus, at the outset of the conflict, set a good example
by felling one of the brigands with a stone, and then seizing his arms. 8 After suffering miserably
from bad governors, the Pentapolitans were at length fortunate in having put over them a young
and active officer, Anysius, who, with a small force of light horse, hunted down the Ausurian bands,
though he lacked strength sufficient to carry war into the enemy's country.
A.D. 428.
Gaiseric, at the head of 80,000 Vandals, crosses
into Africa. 9
a.d. 439.
The Vandals take Carthage. 10 During the
Vandalic supremacy in Africa, there were a
succession of raids, revolts, and disturbances in the
Circa a.d. 445.
Toward the end of the reign of Theodosius II. (d. 450), the Blemmyes are again active in
I Priscus Panites, Frag. 14 in FHG. 2 H. Fournel, op. cit. p. 67 and notes.
3 Philostorgius, Eccles. Hist. xi. 8.
4 Ammianus Marcellinus xxviii. 6. 2, paullisper pacati, in geminos turbines revoluti sunt.
5 Ibid, xxvii. 9. 1.
5 Cf". Synesius, Epist. 74, where the Bishop relates how, in a panic, Cerealis betook himself on ship-board for safety,
and thence directed operations against the barbarian harriers. Cerealis' successor, John the Phrygian, was equally worth-
less {ibid. 86, 104), and it was an exception when the Cyreneans found themselves under an honest praeses or a dux who
was better than a robber-chief.
7 D'Avezac, V Afrique, etc., p. 136, a condensation of the notices in Synesius. 8 Synesius, Epist. 122.
9 H. Fournel, op. cit. p. 76 sqq. and notes. 10 Procopius, De bello Vandalico i. 4.
II H. Fournel, op. cit. p. 81 sqq.
238 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Egypt, and ravage the Oasis Magna. In their retreat, however, they are themselves harried by the
Mazices. 1
a.d. 453.
The general Maximinus, in an expedition
against the Blemmyes and Nobatae, takes from
them, for the first time, hostages. 2
a.d. 491.
The Mazices again raid the Pentapolis. 3
a.d. 518-527.
(Reign of Justin I.) Blemmyes and Mazices plunder Egypt. 4
a.d. 534.
Fall of the Vandals. The disturbances continue
under Byzantine rule.
About this time Justinian forced Christianity on the pagan tribes in the Syrtis and at Augila.
He, moreover, repaired many of the old fortresses in Marmarica and Tripolitana, or built new ones. 5
a.d. 543.
Sergius sent as governor to Tripolitana. According to custom, the chiefs of the Leuathae
come with their followers to Leptis Magna to receive from the new governor the usual presents
and to go through the form of being re-invested in office. A certain Pudentius, who had had a
good deal of experience of the country, recommended to Sergius that only eighty delegates of the
tribesmen should be admitted to the town, while the rest of the Libyans, who had come under
arms, should remain at some distance from Leptis. Sergius made the delegates fair speeches, and
invited them to a banquet, although, according to Procopius, who seeks to excuse what followed,
he suspected their good faith. The delegates fell to complaining of certain grievances they had
suffered at the hands of the authorities ; Sergius made light of their complaints, and gave the
signal for retiring. At this moment one of the Leuathae caught the governor by the shoulder,
wishing to be heard out ; the other Libyans, not without confusion, began to crowd around the
pair. At this instant a guardsman drew his sword, and cut down the chief who was detaining
Sergius. Uproar ensued ; the other delegates were slain on the spot, with the single exception of
one who succeeded in escaping. He, when he reached the Libyan camp, inflamed the tribesmen to
frenzy with his story. The Leuathae marched on the moment against Leptis, outside of which
they met the Byzantine army under Sergius and Pudentius. A fierce hand-to-hand conflict
ensued, but the well-armed and disciplined soldiery of Justinian cut the tribesmen to pieces. The
Libyan camp was looted, the women and children taken prisoners, and at nightfall Sergius
triumphantly re-entered Leptis. Pudentius fell in the battle. 6
It is not surprising that after such treachery on the part of the Byzantines the Leuathae should
embark on a career of rapine and war. Going to Byzacium, where their reassembled forces were
1 Evagrius, Hist. Eccles. i. 7 ; Coptic Life of Schnoudi in the Memoires de la Mission Archeologique francaise, iv.
fol. 53 rect.
2 J. G. Milne, op. cit. p. 100. 3 D'Avezac, op. cit. p. 139.
4 Coptic Life of Schnoudi fol. 47 vers. ; Arabic Life, p. 380.
5 Procopius, De aedificiis vi. 2 and passim. 6 Procopius, De bello Vandalico ii. 2 1 sqq.
HISTORY 239
joined by the chieftain Antalas, they marched on
Carthage. On the road they met the Byzantine
general Solomon, and refusing to listen to his
overtures, they engaged and defeated him, he
himself being taken and slain. 1 The Leuathae
then laid siege to Laribus, from which they
withdrew on the receipt of a heavy tribute.
Sergius, the original cause of these disturbances,
was then nominated successor to Solomon, and
became speedily an object of hatred to every man
under his orders. The Leuathae and Antalas
were reinforced from the west by Stozas, with
whom they ravaged the country, even taking
Hadrumetum. 2 The land became a desert ;
people fled to Sicily to be safe from the Berbers.
It seemed as if Africa was fated to be lost
because of the treachery of Sergius, and it was
not until Justinian entrusted affairs to Johannes
Troglita, an experienced soldier, that matters
began to mend.
A general peace of some duration was obtained circa 550. 3
Circa a.d. 580.
Widespread uprisings throughout Africa. 4
Aristomachus, general of Tiberius II. in
Egypt, having defeated the Nubians, turns his
arms successfully against the marauding Berbers west of the Nile. 6
a.d. 616.
In the sixth year of Heraclius the Persians
under Chosroes entered and subdued Egypt, and
seem to have carried their arms to a point west of
the Nile. 6 The statement that they penetrated as
far as Carthage, wrecking the shattered Pentapolis
on the way, is unfounded. 7
a.d. 640.
r Amr Ibn el-'Asi invades Egypt at the head of
an army of Mohammadan Arabs.
1 Procopius, loc. cit.
2 Ibid. ii. 23 ; Theophanes, Chronogr. vol. i. p. 325 ; Count Marcellinus, Chronicon, p. 54, col. I.
3 H. Fournel, op. cit. p. 98 sqq. The victories of John Troglita form the theme of the Johannis of Corippus.
4 Theophanes, Chronogr. vol. i. p. 402 sq.
5 John of Nikiu, Chronique, p. 95. Aristomachus is there said to have subdued the "Mauretanians," but this can
only be taken to mean the Libyans west of Egypt.
6 Theophanes, Chronogr. p. 252 B, irapekafiov ol Ilepaai ttjv AZyvTrrov, xal . . Ai/3vr]V ecus A.WiottIo.<s . . . ;
Landolfus Sagax, Historia miscella, xx. 5, Mam Aegyptum et Libyam usque ad Aethiopiam. . .
7 A number of writers have asserted that the army of Chosroes reached Carthage. They were misled by an erroneous
lection of XaA X );SoVos as Xapx'jSdvos. Even Gibbon committed this mistake {Decline and Fall, vol. v. p. 71, and note 76).
240 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
A.D. 64I.
Having taken Alexandria, Amr marches
on Barkah. He " proceeded at the head of his troops," writes el-Biladuri, " toward the
Moghreb, and attacked Barkah, a city of the Pentapolis. He gave peace to its population, de-
manding a tribute of 3000 dinars, which they might pay by selling such of their children as they
wished to dispose of. 1 . . . 'Abd Allah Ibn Salih reports on the authority of el-Leyts Ibn Sa'ad,
who himself reports it from Yezid Ibn Abi Habib, that Amr Ibn el-'Asi wrote in the treaty
which he gave to the Luatah Berbers, of the country of Barkah : ' you shall have the right of
selling your children and your women to pay off your share of the tribute.' " 2 The inhabitants
seem to have collected and remitted this tribute without the unwelcome aid of Arab tax-gatherers. 3
'Amr, after subduing Barkah, sent a light expedition south-westerly into the desert under the
command of 'Okba Ibn Nafi', who later rose to such eminence as a Moslem general. 4
a.d. 64.2-64.2- 5
Second expedition of Amr Ibn el-'Asi toward the west. 'Amr sends in advance 'Okba Ibn
Naff toward Barkah and Zawllah and the neighbouring districts, which submit. 'Amr then
marches in person and raids Tripoli, 6 which he takes, as well as the mountains of the Nufusa, which
were inhabited by Christians. 7 At this time, Arab raids became common in Tripolitana. 8
a.d. 646.
First great incursion of the Arabs into el-Moghreb. 9
With this invasion the history of the ancient Libyans may be said to have ended,
and that of the modern Berbers to have begun. The long and exhausting succession
of wars and raids, the occupations of different parts of Eastern Libya by the Egyptians,
the Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Vandals, and Byzantines, the introduction of
Christianity and of Islamism, all contributed to confuse and to change the ethnology in
the northern and eastern zones. In Mohammadan times the Berbers of Tripolitana and
Marmarica tended to become more and more Semiticized, both in speech and in blood.
The unruly spirit which the Berbers have always displayed led, as before, to various
seditions and uprisings, 10 but with these later struggles of a people that had lost their
ethnic purity this study is not concerned. The Arab pressure from the east tended for
centuries to push the Berbers of Eastern Libya toward the west, and south toward the
desert. So completely Arabized is most of Eastern Libya at the present time that it
1 El-Biladuri, Liber expugnationis regionum, p. 224.
2 Ibid. p. 225. Ibn el-Atir, Chronicon, vol. iii. p. 20, states the tribute to have been 13,000 dinars, with which Ibn
'Abd el-Hakam, Futub Misr., vol. i. p. 302, agrees.
3 Ibn 'Abd el-Hakam, loc. cit.
4 M. Caudel, Les Premieres Invasions arabes dans V Afrique du Nord, p. 43 sq.
5 Ibn el-Atir, op. cit. iii. p. 20 ; Abu '1-Mahasin, Annates, p. 85 ; Ibn 'Abd el-Hakam, he. cit. These writers place
the date at 22 a.h. Ibn Abi '1-Dinar, Kitab el-Munis, p. 23, fixes it at 23 a.h. On this divergence see H. Fournel,
op. cit. p. 18 notes 3 and 4.
6 For the details Ibn el-Atir, op. cit. iii. p. 20 ; Ibn 'Abd el-Hakam, op. cit. part i. p. 87.
7 Ibn Abi '1-Dinar, loc. cit.
8 El-Maleki, Rtad en No/us, fol. 2 vers. 1, 9, text cited by M. Caudel, op. cit. p. 48, note 3.
9 M. Caudel, op. cit. p. 49 sqq.
10 Cf. S. Lane-Poole, History of Egypt in the Middle Ages, pp. 24, 31 sq., 126, etc.
HISTORY 241
is a matter for astonishment that in Wagilah, Siwah, and Manshiah el-'Aghuzah (in
Farafrah) the old Berber language has persisted, though in the last hundred years Arabic
has become more common, and is destined soon completely to supplant the native tongue.
The value of the dry and disjointed chronicle of the affairs of the Eastern Libyans
which makes up the greater part of this chapter may not at first be evident, and can
be appreciated only by one somewhat familiar with the later history of this people. 1
In ancient times, the history of the Libyans is one of continued protest against foreign
dominion, and of failure to amalgamate successfully with their European invaders. With
the Carthaginians they certainly mixed to some extent, as is testified by the very name
" Liby phoenicians " ; with the other colonists there was less fusion. No conspicuous
result of these fusions appeared until Arabic times. Then arose the great Berber-Arab
dynasties of the Atlas, and eventually the Negro-Berber-Arab Songhay Empire in the
south-west. The fierce marauders of the earlier period are seen in later days to have
acquired to some extent a quality which, before the advent of the Arabs, they so con-
spicuously lacked — stability. How much of this characteristic was due to the new faith
and how much to Arab fusion it is impossible to say ; but when one considers the
diversity of religious opinion among Moslemic Berbers and their tendency to heretical
views, one is inclined to give a good deal of weight to the second factor. In ancient
times great Libyan kingdoms, like that of Juba, had existed in the west ; there had
been in the east great federations like those which invaded Egypt ; but there were no
consolidated powers such as those of the Sanhagah or Almoravid Dynasties of mediaeval
times. 1
Fierce, predatory, impatient of foreign dominion, and incapable of civilizing
themselves, the Libyans seem to have been a race without a mission — unless for the
influence, not yet determined, which they may have exerted at an early period in Egypt
— until, not without turmoil, they became sufficiently united with the Arabs under
el-Islam to give strength and weight to the Mohammadan dynasties of Africa and Spain.
1 For which the reader may be referred to H. Fournel, op. at., with the continuation (vol. ii.) edited by H. de
Pierrebourg, or the convenient little synopsis of V. Piquet, Les Civilisations de P Afrique du Nord.
2 I
APPENDICES
I. On the "C Group" People of Nubia.
II. On two Inscriptions from Gheytah.
III. Traditional Libyan Origins.
IV. Biblical Notices.
V. The Antaeus-crater of Euphronius.
243
APPENDIX I
ON THE " C GROUP PEOPLE OF NUBIA
I have not the intention, nor, until the final reports of the Nubian Archaeological Survey have
appeared, the right, to give here a detailed description of the so-called " C Group " or " Middle
Nubian " cemeteries excavated by the Khedivial Government between the First Cataract and the
Second. What I intend is merely to state my belief as to the ethnological position of the original
" C Group " people, by way of an Appendix to what, in the second chapter of the foregoing essay,
has been said concerning the southern range of a portion of the Eastern Libyans. For this purpose
I shall use the materials published passim in the Reports and Bulletins of the Survey, to which,
without explicit citation, the reader is referred for the facts adduced in this discussion.
Isolation of " C Group." — The so-called " C Group " cemeteries of Nubia, it was early
recognized, were those of a distinctly non-Egyptian people. They extend in time from about the
end of the Vlth Dynasty to the XVIIIth Dynasty, although the lower date is one to be stated
with some reserve. The only people with whom the " C Group " folk are certainly to be connected
are those of the so-called "Pan-Graves," a people whose burials occur sporadically in Egypt, as at
Hu, Deyr el-Ballas, and Hizam. Despite the marked traces of negrism which the majority of the
" C Group " exhibit, Dr. Reisner, recognizing the importance of the fact that these traces were
most striking in the later burials, remarked : " I would like to suggest as a basis for future
investigation that the communities which produced" the "C Group" culture "were wandering
desert tribes of Nubian origin, living along the edge of the cultivation, much like the Ababdeh in
Upper Egypt at the present time, and the Bedawin in Lower Egypt." In the light of the textual
evidence presented supra, Chapter II., and of certain anthropological and archaeological details which
I shall now bring forward, I believe the early suggestion of Dr. Reisner may now be accepted as
fact, with the single but important change of substituting " Libyan " for " Nubian."
Physical Character of " C Group." — Since the later " Middle Nubian " crania exhibit negroid
traits to a higher degree than do the earlier, it is the former rather than the latter which it is here
important to consider. The final anatomical report upon these crania has not appeared ; but the
reader may appreciate the Mediterranean character of the less negroid skulls from the three here
reproduced (PI. XI.). The aspect of these skulls is ellipsoidal ; the occiput tends to flatness ; and
the frontal eminence to prominence. The bridge of the nose is flattened, but the margins of the
nares are usually sharp. The subnasal prognathism of the " C Group " is not of the characteristic
negroid type, being, in the words of Dr. G. E. Smith, " an exaggerated form of that prognathism
which is so common in the Predynastic Egyptian." Only by exception is the hair woolly or
" peppercorn-like " ; as a rule it is straight or wavy. The following figures from the observations
of Dr. D. E. Derry may here be cited, for although they are taken from subjects between whose
lives as much as a thousand years may have intervened, they serve to indicate the general nature
of these crania : —
245
246
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Elements.
Men.
w
omen.
No.
mm.
No.
mm.
Maximum length
123
183.0
132
176.5
Maximum breadth
117
114.0
127
130.3
Height .
96
135.0
II4
129.3
Cranial base .
102
101.8
I I 7
96.4
Facial base
89
99.6
106
96.1
Upper facial height
53
67.2
56
64.5
Nasal index
53
5'-5
58
52.7
Cephalic index
+ '
72.98
4.2
73-51
I am not in a position to say positively that these figures and the general aspect of the skulls
from which they are taken link the " C Group " with such North African crania as those from
Rokniah or Biskrah, 1 but will be content merely to recall what has been said in Chapter II. in regard
to the appearance of a negroid Libyan type in the Egyptian representations (cf. Figs. 3, 4), and to
repeat that, broadly speaking, the "C group" skulls exhibit certain "Mediterranean" aspects.
The pilous system of the " Middle Nubian " is, when not negroid, that of the brun Berbers.
It is a remarkable fact that the " C Group " crania have an indubitable relationship with those
of Predynastic Egypt. As the proto-Berber element in the Egyptian language testifies to the early
fusion of the Libyans with the other ethnic elements which made the historic Egyptian race, the
affinities between the early " C Group " and Predynastic crania accord well with the theory that the
" Middle Nubians " were of Libyan origin.
Archaeology of the Middle Nubians. — It was on archaeological grounds that I first sought to
relate the " C Group " to the Eastern Libyans, and I here submit the chief features in their culture
which tend to substantiate this theory. 2
A. The burials, as among those Libyans who were least affected by foreign customs, were in
a contracted position. The bodies normally lay on the right side with the head to the east. The
knees were not drawn up under the chin, but the thighs were at right angles to the spine, the legs
being so doubled at the knee that the heels touched the buttocks. The practice of contraction
is too widespread to count here as positive evidence ; but its absence would be a strong presumption
against a Libyan origin.
B. The earlier graves are circular or oval, are deep, and
are covered with stone slabs. The later graves are rect-
angular, in consequence, I believe, of the growth of the Negro
element, the typical Negro graves of Late New Empire times
in the Egyptian Sudan being rectangular. The late "C
Group " graves are generally diamagnetic.
Around the graves, by way of superstructure, runs a
Chapel
i ot
Mud
Bricks
Fl< " 9° a - Fig. 9 oA.
circular wall of stones, often of considerable diameter. The space enclosed by this was filled with
1 Cf. D. R. Maclver and A. Wilken, Libyan Notes, pp. 91 and 92 sqq. ; and pis. xviii., xix.
" What immediately follows is an expansion of a letter sent by me to Dr. D. E. Derry, dated " Sebustiah Syria,
1 2th August 1910."
h
-1
o
u
APPENDIX I 247
earth or small stones, so as to make a circular cairn under which the pit of the grave lies concealed
and protected. Even after the shape of the grave changed from circular to rectangular, the round
superstructure persisted. On the east or south-east side of the superstructure was regularly located
an offering-chapel of mud-brick, in which was placed the funerary pottery, with the exception of
certain types of finely decorated ware, which, probably on account of their superior fabric, were
deposited in the actual grave with the personal ornaments and toilet articles. An example of such
a " C Group " grave of the early period is shown in Fig. 90 a, b.
These remarkable graves I would relate to the great and widespread North African circular type
— the class known in the Western Sahara as the regem (pi. rigam). 1 These exhibit a variety of forms,
and range in workmanship from the rude cairns of the Sud Oranais, or the circles of " Seal Island,"
to such finished monuments as the circular tomb of Kubbah (Cyrenaica), the " Tombeau de la
Chretienne," or the tomb of Medrasen — mausolea which are, while African, in origin, wholly
classical in execution. As an example of this type, I shall cite
first a regem at 'Ayn Sefrah, from the excellent book of E.-F.
Gautier, who first recorded it (section in Fig. 91). 2 This
circular monument is about 8 m. in diameter and some 2.20 m.
high. The cairn or tumulus, with its step-like retaining wall,
j j ■ -j- • Fic - 9'-
surrounds and covers a circular grave, 1 m. in diameter, at its
centre. The grave is half cut out in the soil and half within the superstructure, the roofing being
of slabs raised above the ground-level on others laid flat around the edge of the grave. 3 The
burials in these graves are regularly contracted, and the type is one common in the vicinity of
Gebel Mekter. 4 External offering-places, differing but slightly from those of the " C Group " super-
structures, are not infrequent.
It is so far a cry from the Nubian Nile to the Sud Oranais that the instance cited would be of
no archaeological value unless it could be shown that the rigam had a continental distribution. This
•kt can be done without difficulty, excellent examples of this type of
grave-structure existing in eastern Algeria, and even as near to
Egypt as at " Seal Island " in the Gulf of Bombah. A plan of one of
the east Algerian rigam is seen in Fig. 92. The original is one
^p^^"" ' r^>/\ °' r man y sucn structures at Senam Msilah. As a rule the circles
\J q g \>-, measure about eight to ten metres in diameter, and are made of
U OOeo r> °<Qr\ natural slabs embedded edgeways in the ground. The circular
H o _Q o° QOQqQ O \\ walls invariably have chapels in them, and these are almost always
a rvO QnA OQ /7 placed on the south-east. Traces of the filling of the circular
V) ^ f) r--iOO oC " < ?P Q n enclosures are still discernible in the form of numerous stones lying
V\° O£p£) ^> n within them. 5
\\ q-^ <!s\y The rigam of " Seal Island " are occasionally polycellular, probably
<X tJ-^ °(f? rir «? because of lack of space and from the desire to save labour in
"^ *- — building by the use of the outside of an old wall as part of a new
92, regem. Both these factors contributed to the development of poly-
cellular tombs ; but numerous examples of the simple circular type are to be round, an example
being shown in Fig. 93 a, b, c. Here the stone circle (93, a) measures about 9 m. across and
about 1.15 m. in height. The wall is built of small stones, and rests, as is regularly the case in
these remains, on the granular limestone rock. On the south side, four rude slabs are arranged
1 ^» . plur. (,l» ., sepukhrum ; from ^^ lapidibus iecit.
- E.-F. Gautier, Sahara algirien, p. 64 sqj. for the date of the rigam.
3 The slabs over the grave within the superstructure ma}- in the instance shown be the remains ot an upper
chamber. 4 E.-F. Gautier, op. cit. p. 69.
5 D. R. Maclver and A. Wilken, Libyan Notes, p. 79 sq.
248
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Fig. 93.
so as to make an offering-niche in the bottom of the wall (Fig. 93, c, and section F). Some-
times the superstructures take an elliptical shape, as in an instance where the major axis of the
enclosure measured 8.40 m. and the minor 6.90 m. Again,
instead of the four slabs which usually make the top, sides,
and back of the niche, this feature may be in the form of a
small "chapel" against the tomb, with the walls slightly lower
than those of the enclosure.
The heavy rains which annually visit "Seal Island" have in
most cases washed away the earth from within the walls, which
are themselves generally in a very ruinous condition ; but that
they once contained earth may be seen from such an example
as that shown in Fig. 94. In this case, the smallness of the
tomb and the exceptional thickness of the walls have held the
earth in place.
It cannot be denied that the " Seal Island " rigam exhibit
marked affinities to the " C Group "
graves. They are probably late in
date, though certainly pre-Islamic ; but
that, even in Byzantine times, the part
of Libya in which they are situated
was very slightly affected by foreign
influences will be admitted by any one
acquainted with Synesius's account of
the simplicity of the natives of Marmarica whom he saw while storm-bound on their coast ; l and
there can be no doubt that the "Seal Island " rigam are purely Berber monuments reflecting an early
and widespread type. The chief differences from the " C Group " which
they present are : (rt) the orientation of the offering niches in most cases
toward the south ; (b) the absence, as far as can be ascertained without SL„
excavation," of the grave-pits. The latter difference, I believe to be due
to local conditions, as the soil is rarely more than five centimetres deep
on the island and the rock is stubborn. As in the " C Group " graves
the offerings were mainly outside the superstructure, so at " Seal Island "
scarce a shard was found within the circles, although outside them
fragments, small and weather-beaten, of coarse brown ware or of cheap
Roman pottery were numerous. The small size of some of the tombs —
e.g. that shown in Fig. 94 — testifies to the fact that the Seal Island
burials were in some, if not in all cases, contracted.
C. The " C Group " material affords several representations of
the human figure, both graphic and plastic. The latter appear to be
mostly women, but several of the former represent men. Fig. 95a
shows two bowmen on a fragment of smoothed, coarse red ware from the great cemetery at
Dakkah (Pselchis). The figure on the right is wearing the cross-bands so frequent in Egyptian
representations of Libyans, and both are armed with bows, a common Libyan weapon of which some
Aethiopians seem to have been ignorant, even in late times. Another scene, incised on a pot of
the same ware, is shown in Fig. 95^. A steatopygous woman, wearing a kirtle, faces a man wearing
1 Syncsius, Epht. xvi.
- What is said here of the Seal Island remains, I have extracted from a notebook written during a brief and un-
satisfactory visit to the Gulf of Bombah in 1909. I had then no opportunity of making even sondages, and have since been
unable to revisit the locality.
Fig.
94-
APPENDIX I
249
a sporran-like apron and having in his hair a plume. To the right are traces of a third figure,
partially erased by the artist. The complete figures support between them some caduceus-like
object ; above their heads, at the back of each,
is an object recalling the ancient Egyptian or
modern African head-rest. The kirtle of the
woman agrees with the data concerning Libyan
female dress given in Chapter VII.; but that of
the man, if, as appears, he is really wearing a
" sporran " and not a penistasche, is not typical
of the Libyans of the monuments. On his
head he wears a single plume. It would be
impossible to say definitely whether the wearer
was in this point conforming to Libyan or to
Aethiopian custom, did not other evidence,
recently collected in Nubia, prove the former to
have been the case. From Amadah comes the
XVIIIth Dynasty jar-sealing here represented
in Fig. 96. The device stamped on the sealing
is one very common in Egyptian graphic art : a
victorious ruler standing behind his bound and
crouching captive. This sealing is to be related
to the "C Group" drawing (Fig. 95 £) both
by the plume worn by the victor, and by the
occurrence, in the field of the stamp, of the
same caduceus-like emblem which in the " C
Group " drawing the man and the woman support
between them. 1 In its turn, £)
the Amadah sealing is FlG .
identical in period, fabric, '
and type, with a number of others found at Buhen. But these latter, in place
of the " caduceus," have in the field the hieroglyph ft, for ft Q , imnt, or
ft , imntt, " the West " ; and the victor grasps in his left hand a bow, which
he holds horizontally. 2 The hieroglyph naturally belongs not to the captive,
but to the dominant figure in the scene : a point substantiated by the fact that
Fig. 96. the latter wears a plume. Thus, through the medium of the Amadah sealing,
one has a clear connection between plume-wearing " caduceus "-bearer on the
"C Group" pot, and the plume-wearing westerner of the Buhen sealings. If it be asked how the
latter appears on jar-seals of Egyptian type, found in a site strongly Egyptian in character, the
answer is not far to seek : the victor is some Libyco-Nubian dynast 3 in the Egyptian service
during the campaigns which from the time of Ahmose I. were conducted south of the First
Cataract.
1 This emblem recalls curiously an archaic sign (of Min ?) noted at Diospolis Parva. W. M. F. Petrie, Diospolis
Parva, plate v. B 1 02.
2 D. R. Maciver and C. L. Wooley, Buhen, Text, p. 117, and Plates, pi. 47 (three lowest figures). Maciver and
Wooley recognize the common origin of the Buhen and Amadah seals.
3 The presence of much late " C Group " pottery in the Egyptian fortress of Kubban (Contra-Pselchis) points to
the closeness of the relations between the Egyptians in Nubia and the remnants of the old " C Group " population in
the XVIIIth Dynasty. If, as I suppose, the " C Group " were southern Temehu, this point is important, since it shows
the late " C Group " people in the same relation to the Egyptians as that of the Amadah and Buhen dynasts.
2 K
25°
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Of the plastic figures of the " Middle Nubians," one of the most remarkable is the fragmentary
image shown in Fig. 97. The sex is not easily determinable ; I incline to believe it intended for
a male. It is remarkable as wearing the cross-bands, and the lines
of dots descending to the shoulders from the ears may represent side-
locks, the plastic portrayal of which the artist felt to be beyond him.
(Cf. the rudimentary representation of the arms.)
The plastic representations frequently imitate tattooing or paint-
ing. For as black galena has been found in the graves, it seems that
it was one of these two forms of body decoration, and not cicatrization,
that the figurines portray.
The elements observable in " C Group " decorations are shown in
Fig. 98. They are so simple as to have only a slight archaeological
significance, but they are absolutely the same from a cultural point of
view as the Libyan tattoo-marks shown in Fig. 52, and in some cases
identical with them.
In concluding this note, I may mention that at Gebel Abu Dirwah,
a few miles inland from Dakkah, are a number of petroglyphs which
Mr. C. M. Firth relates to the "C Group" people. Most of these
glyphs are of ostriches, giraffes, etc., but one shows a man's profile
of distinctly Libyan type. 1
D. As fir as divinable, the relinon of the " Middle Nubians "
offers close analogies to that of the Eastern Libyans. The "C Group "
people did not share in the fish taboos of the Aethiopians, for copper fish-hooks have been occasion-
ally found in the graves. As in Libya, the cultus of the dead was strongly developed, and the
cow-worship which, owing to Libyan influence,
permeated the Western Delta, is paralleled among II
the " C Group."
Among the circular superstructures in Dakkah
cemetery were found a number of sandstone slabs.
Those in position were planted upright in the
ground. They were carefully, though irregularly, ' j
worked ; and two had on them representations
of cows with their calves. The drawings had
incised outlines, were coloured red or black, and both from their position and from their careful
execution were unmistakably of religious significance.
E. The material culture of the "C Group" agrees well with that of the Eastern Libyans.
The presence of copper in the graves is to be accounted for by the geographical position of the
people, opposite the river-terminus of a road to the mines of the Eastern Desert.' 2 Bone implements,
traces of goat-skin and dyed leather, and of loose linen coverings are common. The plate-bead
belts of the Abusir relief seem, as has been mentioned in Chapter VII., to be the peculiarly strung
nacre 3 plate-beads so characteristic of the "C Group" ; and the two great classes of "Middle Nubian "
pottery are, as in both ancient and modern Libya, the cup and the jar. In short, if the Eastern
Libyans of the Egyptian period had followed the natural road south from Hargah Oasis to the
1 I regret that I have not a photograph. It is on the west face of the rock described in Bull. Nub. v. p. 10, near
the middle of the rock-face, about breast-high, and is drawn as though the head were thrown back. It faces south (spectator's
right), and shows a slightly aquiline, orthognathous, bearded head.
- Cuprous ore occurs, together with slags, etc., both at Kubban (Contra-Pselchis) and at Koshtamnah.
3 L. Borchardt, Grabdenkmal des Koriigs Nc-User-Rc, p. 47, says of these plate-bead girdles : Der Curt und srin
halbkreisfonnlger Anhang scheinen aus Pcrlen xu bestchen.
II
II
II
APPENDIX I
25 1
vicinity of Derr, and established themselves on the river as sedentaries, their material culture would
not, in any particular that can be named, have varied importantly from that of the early " C Group."
Co
NCLUSION
The evidence which would indicate that the " Middle Nubians "• were of Libyan origin may
thus be summarized from what has been said in this Appendix and in the text : —
I. The great "C Group" cemeteries are on i. The Libyans were first the sole occupants
the west bank of the Nile, in a district geo- of the oases, and later, as the Libyaegyptians of
graphically connected with the Egyptian Oases. Ptolemy, the preponderating element. Their
southerly position on the Nile is explicitly attested
by Strabo, and indirectly by the Harkhuf inscrip-
tions, and by BAR iv. §§ 373, 389, 482. *
2. A prognathous, platyrrhinian, thick-lipped
type of Libyan is occasionally seen on the
Egyptian monuments of the New Empire, e.g.
2. The " C Group " were originally a people
with " Mediterranean " crania, though they
steadily became more negroid toward New
Empire times. They never lost completely Figs^ 3, 4, and N. de G. Davies, Rock Tombs "of
their original physical characteristics, and they
had striking physical affinities with Predynastic
Egyptians.
3. " C Group " burials " laxly contracted."
4. Circular superstructures to " C Group "
graves. Offering chapels outside.
5. "C Group" representations of men with
cross-bands. Woman with kirtle from waist.
el Amarna, part i. plate xxv. and text p. 33*
Libyan element in Predynastic Egyptians.
3. Libyan burials contracted in a " sitting
posture."
4. Libyan regem - type throughout North
Africa. Seal Island rigam with offering places
outside circle.
5. Libyan cross-bands. (Almost unknown
among other Africans represented in Egypt.)
Man wearing feather. Plastic representation of Women with kirtles. Libyan plumes. Libyan
side-lock.
6. Libyan tattooing : designs similar to those
of " C Group."
7. Libyan cow-cultus.
8. Libyan material culture : leather garments,
mats, plate-beads of nacre (?). (From foreign
side-lock (?).
6. Tattooing or body-painting among " C
Group."
7. " C Group " cow-cultus.
8. " C Group " material culture : leather
garments, bone tools, mats, plate-beads of nacre.
(Copper, ut supra, from the Egyptian mines east sources a supply of copper weapons, etc.)
of the Nile.)
9. Two great "C Group" divisions of pottery: 9. Libyan pottery: the "cylix" and the
the bowl and the jar. Northern character of "hydria." Black - topped, polished, red -ware
"C Group" fabrics, red, polished, black-mouthed pottery and geometric incised grey or brown
ware, as in Cyprus and Predynastic Egypt ; ware of Egypt, possibly due to Libyan element
negro character of technique : (punctured in Predynastic Egyptians.
ornamentation, etc.).
From these parallels I incline to believe that the " Middle Nubians " were originally a body of
Libyans, who, while not strong enough to establish themselves, except in small encampments (as at
1 Add to this, and to what has been said supra, Chapter II., the notice for Tehenu Libyans south of Derr, near Anibis, in
H. Brugsch, Geschichte Jgyptens, p. 629, citing LD ciii. 229 c, lines 9-10 ( = BAR iv. § 482). Cf. also W. M. Miiller,
Egyptological Researches, ii. p. 136.
2 The negroid head for which J. Capart {Debuts de I' Art, p. 250, fig. 179, and p. 256) claims a Libyan origin cannot
be here adduced as evidence, since there is no good ground for calling it " Libyan " at all.
252 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Ha, Hizam, and Deyr el-Ballas), on the Egyptian Nile, were powerful enough to plant themselves
along a stretch of the river between the First and Second Cataracts. For reasons given in the text
I believe, furthermore, that it was the Libyan group known as the Temehu to which the " C Group "
belonged ; and that somewhere in the vicinity of Derr lay the region which, by a slight and very
natural error, is called the "district of Tehenut " (Tyhnwi) in the inscriptions of the XXth
Dynasty tomb of Penno {temp. Rameses IV.). 1 The Egyptians did not always discriminate between
the Temehu and the Tehenu, and that a stone 2 named after the former should come from a region
occasionally miscalled after the latter is not strange when it is remembered that both names were
used almost generically for " Libyan."
1 BAR iv. § 482. 2 BAR iv. §§ 373, 389 ; and vide supra, p. 48 sq.
APPENDIX II
ON TWO INSCRIPTIONS FROM GHEYTAH
H
D
Excavating some third century (a.d.) graves at Gheytah in the Egyptian Delta, Petrie and Duncan
discovered two covering-slabs bearing the inscriptions here reproduced in Fig. 99, a, b. The texts
were first published " as archaic Greek, dating from the 6th or 7th century B.C.," but the ex-
cavators added that the inscriptions, " though . . . written in Greek characters," were in an unknown
language. 1 A year later, in his Ghizeh and
Rifeh, Petrie stated that the texts were " in the
Tifinar character, as used among the Tuareg of
Algeria at present." 2 It is because of this
statement that they demand notice here.
No examples of Tifinagh (as opposed to
its parent Libyan) are known before mediaeval
times ; the Gheytah inscriptions contain letters
which are not found in either the Libyan or the
Tifinagh alphabets ; and of the two names which,
with difficulty, Petrie transliterates from the
texts one, " yshmyn," he is forced to regard
as a corruption of the Semitic £ ?Ni>pm\ while
the other, " shnthy," he can apparently relate
to nothing in either the Semitic or Hamitic
onomastica. Moreover, Petrie's lection of the
first signs in each text as jyr and jyrt respec-
tively, and his seeing in the second instance a
T- affix conveying " the sense of becoming or
passing into a condition " is no more convincing
than his relation of jyr(t) to the Kabyle geri,
" to remain," the radical of which would be not
jyr or gyr, but gr. For these reasons Petrie's
second explanation of the inscriptions may be dismissed as as inconclusive as his first.
The fact that Gheytah occupies exactly or very nearly the site of the Roman Vicus Iudaeorum
suggests the real nature of the inscriptions : they are in a writing very closely allied to Safaitic,
Lihyanic, and Thamudenian — Semitic systems which were all in use at the time to which the Gheytah
burials are archaeologically assignable. As characteristic examples may be cited the fourth sign
n
m
Fig. 99.
1 W. M. F. Petrie and J. G. Duncan, Hyksos and Israelite Cities (double volume), p. 60 sq.
showing the inscriptions they are dated seventh century B.C.
2 Idem, Ghizeh and Rifeh (double volume), p. 44, Addendum to u Hyksos and Israelite Cities ."
253
In the Plate (xlviii.)
254 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
from the top in Fig. 99, a ( = the fifth from the top in 99, b), the D of the Semitic alphabets
mentioned; the bottom sign, in the short tag (right hand) in 99,-2 = 2; while the second and
seventh signs from the top in 99, a ( = the second, etc., in 99, b) is the usual wavy to. 1
The inscriptions are written vertically, and the tag in 99, a indicates that, as here reproduced,
they should be read upwards. The initial pairs of signs are common to both texts, as are also the
final pairs. The initial element (bottom pair in 99, a, left, and in 99, b) I would transliterate as TB.
A natural value for this is found in the Chaldaic 39, "good" = Hebr. nhto, "good"; cf. the Hebr.
rna, pret. ^aa, "to be good," adj. xita, "good" ; «aXo?, bonus, in the sense of vir bonus, honestus? The
terminal element in the texts is also a biliteral, which I would read as &Z, SD, with the force of " cut
off" or "departed," by Arab. • * , solus separates fuit, se separavit seorsim mansit. j^ separates,
solus. This gives a very acceptable form of mortuary inscription : an honorific, a name,
and a verb or verbal adjective denoting death. As for the names, I give my transcription only with
reserve. The Lpj, swastika, in 99, b, I regard not as a letter, but as a mere ornament or as a
signum emphaticum. I tentatively read the name of 99, # as ST-NMY, perhaps = -j~n# ; ncp
pr. n. connected with ntp, " buttocks," and with n», " columns," etc. (i.e. " foundation," " firmness")
and so (Gesenius, in verb.), "princes," "nobles"; and "', increvit, augmentum cepit, etc.
Hence this name would have the force of "Sedes Tncrementarum." The tag (bottom, right) is illegible,
but may have been, as commonly, a locative. The name in 99, b, with similar reserve, I would read as
YSB-M& = a>trlffi\ " dwelling-in-purity " ; cf. rOBfo-aqj -1 , pr. n., " sitting-in-consessus " ; *3ffi;, "to
sit," " to be seated," "to tarry," and (frequently) "to dwell," "to dwell in," "to inhabit," Hoph.
" to be made to dwell," etc. ; *swa and Arab. ££*>, which by the loss of £ has given the derived
*^, abstersit, "to make clean," "to purify" ; cf. the pr. n. ostpp, Mise'am, apparently =" their-
cleansing."
The Gheytah inscriptions, therefore, are not Berber, but Semitic, and may thus be translated : —
Fig. 99, a, "The worthy ST-NMY ; departed" . . .
Fig. 99, b, " The worthy YSB-MS ; departed."
1 For the Thamudenian alphabet see J. J. Hess, Die Entzifferung der tamiidischen lnschriften, in RT, vol. xxxiii.
pi. vi. ; for the Safaitic, E. Littmann, Zur Entzifferung der Safa-Inschriften, PI. i. ; for Safaitic and Lihyanic, R. Dussaud
and F. Macler, Voyage, ete., p. 13.
2 W. Gesenius, Hebrew Lexicon, in verb. 3D, *tib. Perhaps these words are both allied to the Arab. ^J^, leniter
egit, humanum se praebuit (G. W. Freytag, Lexicon, in verb). For 3b in personal names with same force as above, cf.
Skub, " God-is-good," by Syriasm for httite (Isaiah vii. 6).
APPENDIX III
TRADITIONAL LIBVAN ORIGINS
Several notices regarding the origin of the Libyans as a whole, and of separate Libyan tribes, have
survived from classical times. These notices are not without interest as exhibiting the mental cast
of the proto-Berbers, but to suppose them of any great historical value, as not a few recent writers
have done, is to assume that the folk-memory of the North Africans was phenomenally tenacious.
In his Jugurthine War, the Roman historian Sallust presents his readers with the following
account of the origin of the native Africans :
" Africa," he writes, " was in the beginning peopled by the Gaetulians and Libyans, rude and
uncivilized tribes, who subsisted on the flesh of wild animals, or on the herbage of the soil like
cattle. They were controlled by neither customs, laws, nor the authority of any ruler ; they roamed
about, without fixed habitations, and slept in those shelters to which night drove them. But after
Hercules, as the Africans believe, perished in Spain, his army, which was made up of different
nations . . . was quickly disbanded. Of its constituent troops, the Medes, Persians, and
Armenians, having sailed over into Africa, occupied the parts nearest to the sea [i.e. the Mediterranean].
The Persians . . . settled more toward the [Atlantic] ocean, 1 and used the inverted hulls of their
vessels as huts, there being no wood in their country', and no chance of getting it, either by purchase
or barter, from the Spaniards, because a wide sea and an unfamiliar tongue were barriers to all
intercourse. These [Persians] by degrees intermarried with the Gaetulians ; and because, from
constantly trying different soils, they were for ever shifting their abodes, they called themselves
Numidians [Numidas]? And to this day the huts of the Numidian peasantry, which they call
mapalia, are of an oblong shape, with covered roofs, resembling the hulls of ships.
"The Medes and Armenians connected themselves with the Libyans, who dwelt near the
African sea ; while the Gaetulians lay more toward the sun, not far from the torrid deserts. And
these 3 soon built themselves towns, since, being separated from Spain only by a strait, they opened
an intercourse with its inhabitants. The name ' Medes' the Libyans gradually corrupted, changing
it, in their barbaric tongue, into Mauri [Mauros pro Medis !].
" The power of the Persians rapidly grew, and at length their descendants, through excess of
1 Intra oceanum magis. Most critics explain intra oceanum as denoting the parts lying close to the ocean and bounded
by it. There is some confusion in this passage between the names Persae and Pharusii. The latter were an historic
people of the Atlantic seaboard of Africa (cf. Polybius ap. Pliny v. I. 8 ; Strabo ii. p. 131, xvii. pp. 826, 828;
Ptolemy iv. 6 § 6), whose name readily lent itself to one of those facile etymologies in which the Romans delighted.
Thus, in Pliny (v. 8) one finds Pharusii, quondam Persae (cf. Mela iii. 10. 3).
2 This popular derivation of Numidae from the Greek vo/^fav, " to graze," or vo/ids, " a pastoral wanderer," is
questionable. Festus, certainly, is explicit : Numidas dicimus quos Graeci No/xaSes, she quod id genus hominum pecoribus
negotietur, sive quod herbis, ut pecora aluntur (p. 62 Egger), and No/^es as a descriptive of some of the North Africans is
clearly intended in several classical passages {e.g. ol Mavpoicnoi No/^Ses in Appian, Bell, civil, ii. 44). Cf. Oberhn's note in
Vibius Sequester, p. 41 1. " s /•'• the Medes, Armenians, and Libyans.
255
256 THE EASTERN LIBYANS
population, separating themselves from their parents, took possession, under the name Numidians,
of those regions bordering on Carthage which are now called Numidia. In time, the two parties,
[i.e. the early Numidians and the immigrants], each helping the other, reduced the neighbouring
tribes, either by force or fear, under their dominion. But those who had spread toward the sea
made the greater conquests, for the Libyans are less warlike than the Gaetulians. At last nearly
all lower Africa \_Africae pars inferior, i.e. maritime Africa] was occupied by the Numidians ; and
all the conquered tribes were merged in the nation and name of their conquerors." 1
The most interesting feature of this detailed relation is that, either by accident or through some
vague survival in the folk-memory, it records an ancient invasion from Spain into the Moghreb —
an invasion such as really took place in the second millennium b.c. Also of interest, though quite
in opposition to the known facts, is the statement that the invaders are said to have been of oriental
origin (Persians, Medes, and Armenians). It is not possible to determine whether legend rooted in
historical fact, or mere fancy, is responsible for this account of an invasion from Spain ; but the
oriental nationality of the invaders is more easily explicable.
Among the Mohammadan Negroes of the Senegal, as among the negroid Berbers of the Rio de
Oro and Atlantic Marocco, it is not difficult to find at the present time men wholly free from Arab
admixture who assert that they are lineal descendants of Mohammad (shurifa or ash raf, ls^ or 1 — slyil
"nobles," "nobility," sing, sherif __a>,^). These false shurifa take pride in identifying themselves
with the race which has come to have dominion over them, which has imposed upon them its religion,
and of which they tacitly acknowledge (while none the less hostile to the Arabs) the superiority.
The same eagerness to be thought related to a people at once disliked but admittedly superior is to
be seen in the inscriptions of Roman Africa, where purely native names linked with Latin fraenomina
are of common occurrence. In the days of the Carthaginian supremacy in Africa, the same tendency
was doubtless at work. The Libyan within the Punic sphere readily sought to aggrandize himself
by aping the manners of the Semitic colonists, and by claiming for himself an origin which, like theirs,
was oriental. This, I believe, is the reason why the invaders from Spain were said to have been
Persians, Medes, and Armenians. Sallust's source was a Libyco-Punic one, — he professes to have
derived his information from certain " Punic books said to have belonged to King Hiempsal," 2 the
grandson of Masinissa, a source in which the spirit of identification between Africans and Asiatics
would have been very pronounced.
The Byzantine historian Procopius has, like Sallust, preserved a story of African origins which
reflects this tendency on the part of the Libyans to relate their remote ancestry to Asia Minor.
Procopius relates how a certain Jesus (Joshua), the son of Noah, succeeded Moses at the time of the
Exodus, and led the Hebrews into Palestine. The littoral of that country was then held by the
Girgashites, the Jebusites, and other Phoenician tribes. These, unable to bear the dominion of the
new-comers, passed into Egypt ; but there being no room for them there, they held on to the
westward, and occupied the Moghreb as far as the Straits of Gibraltar. Their flight was com-
memorated by a Phoenician inscription on two stone columns near a fountain in Numidia. This
inscription, in the Greek " translation " of Procopius, runs as follows :
H/iets eafiev 01 (pwyovTes airo TrpoacoTrov 'Irjaov tov \r}GTo£i vlov Navr).
" We are those driven forth before the face of Jesus the Robber, the son of Noah." 3
The Byzantine historian concludes with several remarks on the later history of the exiles, whom he
explicitly identifies with the Maurusii."
1 Sallust, lugurtha, 18. 2 Ibid. 17.
3 J. Selden, De di'u Syris, p. 18, has translated this inscription into Phoenician, or rather Hebrew !
4 Procopius, De hello Vandal, ii. 10. 2. This story, only slightly condensed, may be found also in Landolfus Sagax,
Historia miscella, xviii. 12.
APPENDIX III 257
Here even more clearly than in the story of Sallust can be seen the Libyan ambition to establish
a common origin for both the indigenous North Africans and the Semitic colonists. In a similar
vein are a number of tales preserved by Arabic writers, 1 who relate the origin of the Berbers to
el- Yemen in Arabia, or to the land of Canaan in Syria. Several writers who maintain that the
Berbers originated in the latter region connect their exodus from their first home to their second
with the slaying of Goliath by David, and the subsequent victory of the Israelites over the Philistines.
Thus, el-Bekri identifies the Berbers with the vanquished Philistines, 2 and other writers even state
that Goliath (i^Sls-) was the original ancestor of the indigenous North Africans. 8
*
* *
This last point may serve to introduce a topic connected with old ideas as to Libyan origins on
which I have not yet touched — the question of eponyms. The above stories seek to explain the
origin of the indigenous North Africans as a whole, though they are concerned most intimately with
the Western Libyans, who lived within what was once the Punic sphere. A number of theories
more purely native in character than those yet cited, and belonging more particularly to the Eastern
Libyans, sought to relate the origins of individual tribes to eponymous king-ancestors. Thus, the
Marmaridae asserted their race to have sprung from Marmaris, son of Arabs ; 4 the Adyrmachidae,
Ararauceles, Byzes (or Asbystae ?), Machlyes, and Macae, according to a late arrangement, all
descended from the nymph Amphithemis, the mother of Psyllus, the eponymous king-ancestor of
the Psylli. 5 The tomb of this Psyllus, according to Pliny, was to be seen on the shores of the
Major Syrtis. 6 The Nasamones believed themselves descended from an eponymous Nasamon,
Nao-a/Liwi', 7 whose name the natives pronounced in a manner which differentiated it from the ethnic.
Nasamon himself sprang from Garamas, Tdpafia?, the ancestor of the Garamantes. 8
The evidence on the old eponymous heroes or kings, though coloured by the classical or Arabic
mediums through which it has been transmitted, leaves no room for doubting that the Eastern
Libyans, like so many primitive peoples, had numerous tribal ancestors, whose names and deeds
probably figured largely in the old folk-lore, and who were venerated as semi-divine founders.
1 Especially Ibn Haldun, Kitab el-Ibar, vol. i. pp. 173 sqq.
2 El-Bekri, ap. ibid., vol. i. p. 177. 3 E.g. Ibn Kotaybah, ap. Ibn Haldun, op. cit. vol. i. p. 175.
4 Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 214. 6 Agroetas, Frag. 1 in FHG.
6 Pliny, vii. 2. For Psyllus cf. Nonnus, Dionysiaca xiii. 381 sqq.
7 But the older form of the ethnic, as has been said, was Mesamones.
8 Eustathius ad Dionys. Perieg. 209 ; 217. Cf. Isidorus Hispalensis, Etymol. ix. ii. 125. The eponymous Garamas
in classical legend appears as a son of Apollo : Garamante rege, Apollinis filio, qui ibi ex suo nomine opfidum condidit (Lutatius,
Schol. in Lucan. Pharsal. iv. 334, ed. Oudendorp, p. 290 a).
2 L
APPENDIX IV
BIBLICAL NOTICES
I have reserved until now a few words on the Old Testament notices of the Libyans, since they are
of interest rather to Biblical scholars than to the student of early North Africa.
When, in frequent conjunction with the Egyptians and the Ethiopeans, appears in the O.T. a
people called Lubim cr<yh 1 (once DrnS), 2 there can be no doubt that the reference is to the Libyans —
a supposition which is confirmed by the translation A//3ue? in the Septuagint? Another, and, as
Gesenius suspects, an older, form of the name exists in the O.T. as Lehabim D^irr?, 4 the Adfiietfi
(var. Adfiew, Adftie/j,) of the LXX. Both names are so clearly related to the Egyptian <z " " > J PK ) v&
rb-w, that it is superfluous to seek another origin for them, although an attractive etymology is
suggested by the Arabic J, regionis aridae incola, from *Jy&. b
No detailed particulars concerning the bearers of these names appear in the Bible. The Lubim
figure vaguely as allies both of Tyre 6 and of Egypt, 7 while the Lehabim characteristically appear as
a " son " of Mizraim, the " son " of Ham. 8
1 2 Chron. xii. 3 ; xvi. 8 ; Nah. iii. 9. The singular form occurs once doubtfully as 3) 1 ? in Ezek. xxx. 5.
2 . Dan. xi. 43.
3 The similarity between the early forms of the Semitic 3 and 1, and the consequent ease with which they might be
mistaken in transcribing a foreign name, have in some cases resulted in the name Lubim's being confounded with that of
another people, the Ludim, o'-p 1 ?. Thus in Jer. xlvi. 9 certainly, and in Ezek. xxvii. 10 perhaps, on* 1 ? should be emended
to a<yh.
4 Gesenius, Lexicon, in verb. (p. 512); Gen. x. 13; 1 Chron. i. 11. The contexts in which the name Lehabim
appears forbid its relation, which some have sought to establish, to the place-name Balah (in southern Judah — Josh. xv. 3 ;
xix. 3), deriving D'an^ from D[n]Sjia = D-[n]ri^3.
6 Gesenius, op. cit., p. 524. in verb.
6 Ezek. xxvii. 10 reading Lubim for Ludim [supra, note 3).
7 Dan. xi. 43 ; Ezek. xxx. 5 ; etc.
8 Gen. x. 6-13 ; 1 Chron. i. 8-1 1. Cf. Josephus, Antiq. Iud. i. 2. In regard to Mizraim nnsD as an ethnic used
at a fairly remote period by foreigners for the Egyptians — especially for the Delta — I would, with great reserve, suggest
a possible connection between this name and the MZGH names discussed at length earlier in this essay. There is, by
o o
Hamitic phonesis, no difficulty in the permutation of c. to the r of msD or the Arabic y&«, , and the medial sibillant occurs
as j, s, s, or z almost indifferently. The presence of Libyans using an MZGH name in the early Delta, or even in Sinai
would explain how foreigners came to apply the title generally to the dwellers in the Nile Valley. The greatest difficulty
here arises from the existence of the Assyrian word misru, " border, boundary," and of the (allied ?) geographical names
Musri=(i) part of Cappadocia, (2) a place in the Anti-Taurus, and Musur= Lower Egypt. But if these names are really
allied to musri, may not that word itself have had at first a specific, and later a secondary, general significance ? It would
be an impertinence if I did not say, in publishing this note, that I have only a reading knowledge of Hebrew, and none
of Assyrian.
258
APPENDIX IV 259
In regard to the association of the Lubim with the Tyrians, it is worth while to recall two points
which have received attention earlier in this essay. It has been noted that the fortress of Satuna,
which was stormed by the Egyptians, held a mixed garrison of Libyans and Asiatics ; l and that the
vases of precious metals represented in an Egyptian relief as forming part of the booty taken from
the Libyans are distinctly Syrian in form. 2 This evidence, in conjunction with the vague O.T.
notices, encourages the belief that the relations between Eastern Libya and the Syrian coast were
friendly and fairly intimate.
1 Supra, p. 151. 2 Supra, p. 142 and Fig. 53.
APPENDIX V
THE ANTAEUS-CRATER OF EUPHRONIUS
This well-known masterpiece of fifth-century vase-painting, now in the Louvre, affords an
interesting representation of a Libyan, which has not, so far as I am aware, yet been recognized as
such. In the scene where Heracles is portrayed as wrestling with his African adversary, the
combatants are strongly differentiated. The faces of both (Fig. ioo) are shown as orthognathous,
but, whereas Heracles is given the usual straight profile common to Greek, graphic art in general,
and to other Euphronian Greek faces in particular, Antaeus is represented as having a nose well-
shaped but slightly aquiline, and strongly marked supra-orbital ridges. The treatment of the hair
also differs in the two. That of the Greek hero is short, and ends in a roll of curls at the nape of
the neck, and from the ear up and across the forehead. The beard is short and the moustache
Fig.
slight. In the case of the Libyan giant the hair is long and matted, and it projects over the brow
in a manner which at once recalls, the Egyptian representations. The beard is long and pointed ;
the moustaches longer and fuller than those of Heracles. As may be seen in Poittier's excellent
reproduction (from which I have drawn Fig. ioo), the hair of the Libyan is shown as lighter
in hue than that of the Greek (which I have left without detail). The lips of Antaeus are realistically
parted in the stress of conflict, and the whole is rendered with the care characteristic of a master.
In the field is the explanatory name [ANJTAIOS.
There can be no question that in this picture Euphronius, without doing violence to current
traditions as to what was seemly in his art, has intentionally portrayed Antaeus as rude, grim
and savage. It was inevitable that the Libyan giant should be given a rugged cast of countenance'
260
APPENDIX V 261
but the especial type chosen by the artist is the significant matter. From the intercourse
between the Libyans and the Cyrenaic Greeks, and between Cyrene and Greece, it is almost
a certainty that Libyan sailors were no uncommon sight in the streets and taverns of the Piraeus,
even in the fifth century. It is to be recalled, moreover, how early in Greek plastic vase-forms the
Athenian potter took his inspiration even from the black Aethiopians of the far south. 1 The
possibility that Euphronius may often have seen mingled with the Greek sailors at least stray
examples of the African barbarians may, I think, be accepted without reserve. 2 This admitted,
what is more natural than to suppose that in conceiving the Libyan giant in this scene he should
recall to mind the Berber faces he had encountered in Athens or at the port ? Four features
seem to bear this out : the projection of the hair over the brow, the marked supra-orbital ridges,
the slightly aquiline nose of the Antaeus, and the form of the beard. I would suggest a comparison
of this profile with those to be seen in PL I. 1, 4, 5 ; PI. II. 4, 5, etc. The face as a whole impresses
me, after long familiarity with the Egyptian representations, as Berber in character.
1 A sixth-century instance, of which Dr. G. H. Chase kindly reminded me, is afforded by the Busiris vase in the
Oesterreichisches Museum in Vienna, for the bibliography of which. see S. Reinach, Repertoire des vases feints, vol. i.
pp. 169-170. The Antaeus-crater belongs to Euphronius's early period (500-480 B.C.). See H. B. Walters, History of
Ancient Pottery, vol. i. p. 430 sq.
2 Euphronius's personal fondness for peculiar types is well known, and that the Antaeus-crater is from his own hand
is testified by the '£ypa\j/ev inscription.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Librorum, qui in conscribendo hocce libra praesto fuerunt . . ., indicem adiiciamus, non vanam eruditionis gloriam
captaturi, sed ne lectores ignorent fontes, e quorum auctoritate fides dictorum pendet, neve editionum diversitate
forte decipiantur. — J. M. Hartmann, Edrisii Africa, p. xiii.
Abel, C.
1. Einleitung in ein agyptisch-semitisch-indoeuropa-
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274
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PHILOLOGICAL INDEX
abaikur, 8 1
abekur, 81
aber, 84 n. 1
abessi, 83
Abtungensis, 185
abu zuba 'ah, 175
abzug, 76
adbir, 75
ad-elkem-e c, 74
admar, 75
adrar, 79.
adu, 78
adugil, 75
afulai, 75
agagid, 75
agedid, 75
agellid, agellid, 75
agenna, agenna, 75
agenna, 80
aggur, 75, 188
agmar, 75
agugil, 75
aguhil, 75
'aguzah, 78
ahar, 79 n. 6
aifki, 76
aiyur, 77, 188
ak, 79
akabbar, 80
akafai, 76
akgun, 75
aksum, 75
akzin, 75
ales, 74
ali£, 79
almi, 76
amag, 81
amagei, 75
am- ahar, 79 n. 6
aman, 82
amased, 75
am-eri, 79 n. 6
amc.ar, 79
ameza, 82
amezuc., 82
amza, 82
amzuaru, 83
anebdu, 75, 76
anefdu, 75, 76
"angel," 208
anhil, 76
" Aquel Amarig," 42 n. 4
Aptungensis, 185
Ardal (-is), 77
Ardan (-is), 77
ar- (dar), 83
armi, 76
*Arzucis, 68 n. 7
Arzug, 68 n. 7
Asby(s)tae, 80
Asbystae = Hasbitae, 47
asellid, 75
*Astures, 68 n. 3
asulao, 75
ausar, 78
Ausari, 78
auser, 78
*AUS<t>UR, 68 n. 7
(Aus-) ufal, 77
*Auxugis, 68 n. 7
Auz-, 78
Auziqua, 78
Auzius, 78
aysum, 75
Azu, 78
azug, 76
Bacales, 80
Balcarensis, 185
Balacris, 185
BaSSaCH-itae, JJ
bd, 82
bess, 83
b = pp, 80
br, 84 n. 1
bs, bs, 82
bis", 83
bt, 82
b urgaz, 76
Byzacenis, Byzacitis, Byza-
9, permuting to H or U, 47
cium, 54
bz(i), 82
//. 2
gl> 79
caput-, 79 n. 8
Cilibba, 77
gn,- 80
G, R, and c., 68 n. 7
g r > 2 S3
Darnis, 77, 79
gs, 82
drr, 79
Guillaume = William, 47 n. 2
du, 78
g urgaz, 76
Dyrin, 77
Hasbitae, 47
ebbad, 82
(Hattiah el-) Lebuk, 46
ebzi, 82
hepes, 147
efk, 81
hund, 75
egdem, 75
egzem, 75
ibbod, 76
ehad, 76
ibbessi, 83
eldi, 76
jd, 75
elli, 76
idda, 76
eLKeM, 74
idraren, 79
elkem-e&, 74
idraren-*mak, 79
idu, 78
emmet, 82
Ieru, 188
eni, 78
igenni, 80
iggat, 75
erges, 75
i|I en > 75
ergez, 75
eri, 79 n. 6
i£ed, 75
ers, 79
ika, 79
esed, 75
ikabbaren, 80
esek, 75
ikkat, ikkat, 75
evod, 76
*I-legath-en = Ikg(u)aten, 67
ezga, 78
ilia, 76
ezua, 78
immet, 82
ezzar, 83
i-MaGiGH-en, 42
i-MaZiGH-en, 42
fer-, 84 n. 1
i-MaZiR-en, 42
fg(0, 81
i-MuSaGH, 42
flc, fk, 8 1
Irasa, 79
fl, 78
irsa, irsu, 79
isek, 75
Galyba, 77
it, 75
garth- = hort-, 47 n. 1
ltbir, 75
(Gaza-) ufal (a), 77
iudef, 75
Ger (-as), Ger (-eatis), Ger
iutef, 75
(-gis). 78
iuut, 76
gen, 253
iyen, 75
277
278
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
izga, 78
iziia, 78
izzar, 83
kb, 79
kbr, 80
kel, 114 n. 7
kibly, 175
kk, 79
kn, 80
Kppur, 80
K-^-n^ty, 122
ks, 82
k= t, 80 n. 5
k = u = w, 46
Lac (-a), 78
Lac (-ci), 78
LBKI = LBU, 80
Lebuk, 46
LEPCITANA, 80
Leptis, 80
lg> 79
l£,79 ^
Libya, xix
Libyes, 80
l = n, 48
M-, M, 79, 82
Macri, 78, 79
magalia, 168 ». 6
maiar, 79
magn-, 79 n. 7
Magru, 78, 79
*mak, 79
Mara (-bina), 78
Mara (-zana), 78
Marmaridae, 80
Marsalla, xxi
Mas-, 62
MaSaK, 42 ». 13
MaSiK, 42 n. 13
Mas-inissa, 80
MaSiR, 42 n. 13
Mas-iva, 80
Massae-SyL-i, 66
Massamarus, 80
Mas-sasyli, 80
Mas-tigas, 80
Mas-timan, 80
MaSuCH-ii, 77
MaSuCH-is, 77
Mas-SyL-i, 66
Mas-syH, 80
"Mauros pro Medis," 225
Maxula, Maxulla, 42 n. 12
MaXY-es, 42, 47, 77
MaXY-tani, 42 n. 12
MaZaC-es, 42
MaZaC-ila, 77
MaZaG-es, 42
MaZiC-es, 42, 77
Mazices, 80
MaZiGH, 42
MaZY-es, 42, 47, 77
mdr, 83
megig, 81
mes-, 52 n. 8, 80, 81
Mesamones, 52 n. 8
mess, 83
mg, 81
mAr, 79
Miglis Gemella, 233 n. 6
Mina, Minna, 78
Misagenes, 80
misru, 258 n. 8
m = n, 63, 79
mr, mr-mr, mr-w, 80
mr(t), 84 n. 1
MRY(U), 80
ms, 83
ms, 80
ms, 81, 83
msdr, 82
ms^k), 82
MSKN, 80
msr, 83
mss, 83
msu, 47
mt, 82
Musti, 78
Mus-SuL-ani, 66
musur, 258 n. 8
mz, 82
mzc, mzgh, 42, 47, 62, 77,
80, 258 n. 8
mzi {not the ethnic), 82
N, 83
nek, 75
nekker, 75
nes, 75
np\ 7 8
nhsy-'imn, 58 n. 8
nip per, 75
Numidae, 255 ;?. 2
offak, 81
Pharusii and Persae, 255 n. I
Phazania and *Gamphasantes,
53 «-7
pr-rs, 12 ». 3
R, 83
rbw, xix n. 2, 80, 258
rs, 79
Rus-, 78, 79
Rusadder, Rusadir, 79
rwd, 217 n. 1
sasem, 75
(Si[c]-) cilibba, 77
SiL-cadenit, 66
SiL-vacae, 66
SL (in ethnics), 66
S-P-D cf. *S-B-T-T, 47
S permuting with T, D, 51
n. 7
S- prefixed to pr. n., 63
sr, 83
ST-NMY, 254
su, 82
suic., 82
sund, 75
swr, 82
T, 76 sq., 82
Tabuinatis, 77
Tabunte, 77
taburt, 76
Tacape, 77, 79
tadevvot, 75, 76
tafina& , 88 n. 1
tap at, 75
takabt, 79
T-akrif-t, 76
Talalatus, 77
Tamaric (etum), 78
Tamaric (ium), 78
tamadirt, 83
ta-MaSeGH-t, 42
tamfust, 76
tammettant, 82
Tanabrasta, 77, 78
tanfust, 76
tanhilt, 76
Tapanitae, 77
Tarichiae, 77
tasem, 75
Taucheira, "JJ
tazabat, 75, J 6
£azuara, 83
tb, 254
teffez, teffez, 75
tehat, 75
tekuset, 82
Telgae, 77, 79
temuier, 79
Tenebreste, 78
tenpid, ten&id, 75
tes, *test, 76
t(f), 82
Thagul (-is), 78, 79
Thagur (-a), 78, 79
Thuben, 77
Tidamenses, 77
T-idikel-t, 76
timimun, 76
Tinci Ausari, 78
Tingi (-s), 78
tinp, 78
tizemmets, 78 n. 3
tkrw, 80 n. 6
tmart, 84 n. 1
tsimimun, 75
T-ua-t, 76
Tubactis, 77
T-uggur-t, 76
tugurium, 79
tuurt, 76
Tyhnwt, 252
ufrik, 75
ufrits, 75
u=g, 67
u = k, 80
u urgaz, 76
usr, 78
uz, 78
YSB-MS, 254
z = t, 63
Zagylis, 79
(z) -ara, 83
zm, 78 n. 3
zr, 83
zund, 75
PHILOLOGICAL INDEX
279
'ASup/iaxiSat, 79
AAAAAEIP, 231 n. 3
AAAZH(P), 231 n. 3
^AAa&>, 231 n. 3
'A/xovyKa, 'ApovyXa, 'ApnVxAa, 1 97
'A/iouv, 1 90 ». 10
[ANJTAI02, 260
' Attto^xov tepdv, 185
'ApTTVLCU, apird^tiv., 82
'Aer/Serai, 47
'Aarfivrai, 47
AY2-t-r-A-ai, 52 ». 5
*Awouptavoi, 68
AY2-X-t2-at, 5 2 #. 5
AY2-X-iT-at, 52 ». 5
AlJTO^OU, I85
B permuting to M, 62, 63
BaKaA.es, 48
BaAdypai, 1 8 5
BdAis, 185
BaVSiAoi = Vandali, 67
Bdpues, 93 ». 4
BaTT09, 1 1 6 ». 2
B ^-> 54
BtSfaires, 55
r permuting to B, 54, 55
*Tajj.(f>do-avr£s, 5 3
*
* *
Tavydp.rj\a, 233 n. 6
TB = Kn, 63
rvf- and Zuy-, 52 «. 3
Ti^-, Zi>y- and Bvf-, 54
rufavres, 55
8d.Kpv = lachryma, 76 ». 1
Aapvis, 79
t& Aeppiv opos, 79
SiKTves, 93 ». 3
Aiyoiv, 79
Za/Bv- for Bufa-, 5 3 ». 2
ZiSyavTes, 55
-iSai, 77
tore = 18-Te, 47
-nai, 77
*Ki8ayi*ijvo"ioi, 63
A = p, 64
Adj3eiv, AayStetjii, Ad/3iep., 258
AefaavO- ( = Leuanth-) = Lag(u)ant-, 67
Aewa- = Ae/3a-, 67
Aeua#- = Legath-, 67
At/Svapx°", 62 ». I
Atfives, 46, 258
Aifivrj, xix ». 1
M permuting to B, 62, 63
Manxes, 42 ». 9
*Ma<rcraxtTai., 60
Ma^Aues, 79
Ma^/ies for MaxAucs, 52 ». 19 ; cf. 53
n. I
Md\pv€S, 79
/^eyaA-, 79 n. 7
/tiecros \J/dp,px>s, 52 w. 8
*Miai8ioi, 64
vo/idfeiv and Numidae, 255 ». 2
II not known in Berber, 63
PoucrdSapov, 79
Scuot for 2a«ot, 64 n. 3
2-]aNaBuK- =Anabuc-, 63
*2eAaKoves, 63
*TawTa/xatous, 65 «. 6
QaXaKpa, 1 85
■$" unknown in Berber, 66
1, N
Jb), 82
yj, 84 n. I
^1, 82
cyl, 89 ». 4
^y> 79
jj, 78
(>)> 83
v_ry"
79
l2> 78
';> 78
U;l, 80
_j!/i.l, 256
lUIs!, 81
*
*
Jil, 78
St" n
JjAsr* yo, 7°
CJl» 79
mp^o-Ti, 184 ». 4
yU yb, 7°
^un, 80
iSj, 66 ». 12
y^r° y*> 7 °
£*!>> 79
j-i, 82
v j~iy > 1 z n - 3
D- , [n]n^/i, 258 ». 4
2 Ley* yo, 7°
Sja«)jJI yo, 70
vi~.i. 82
fwa, 198
^jj»-Ij yu, 70
l;J, 82
;arr^??> 198 ». s
( Jb, 89 ». 4
jy'v-o 1 ' 83
Hp-^3, 185
.^USI^jj, 198 ». 2
£ } jj, 82
jj, 81
^U*l, 79
a[n]biJ3, 258 »• 4
^ ^' 7°
y L yo, 69
c^o&, 79
pDN, 198 *. 4
^h yj, 69
^.J Jo', 198
jil, 78
^jjJo- yj> 7°
J £, 79
jy, 78
«ciJ yu, 7 1
CJ,'wtJ, 84 8. I
^jl, 78
M, 89 ». 4
isJole yu, 7°
jiiysS yo, 7°
.i_^JU-*j', 82
ti^JU*j, 82
ei~>J> 89 *• +
*»jj P'" 11
jL**i, 79
28o
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
ran, 198 ». 5
J£y, 79
Sy*J.jJ, 70 «. I
jJuuij, 88 w. 1
jjyj, 78
<y_5=^> 79
c^woyu, 82
e^jj^*, 83
Ja^, 78
_a.»J Jji^> 153
N3n, 198/2. 5
&,•>> 79
y !j- 83
/»^/» *s^,, 24.7 «.
&Uj, 7°
«/U|. 6 9
yyolm, 63, 193 Tl. IO
<fci i^Jwo 7° »• 1
^, 82
ij^j, 7° n - l
ItJiMJ, 2
»^*w, 70 ». I
u 1, m
^li-ntp, nm, 254
j-l, 2 54
U^, 256
1 Mj&, 256
^UaJwi. 175
u°
s,xo, 7 1
(k>) £3
la, 254
bi^ya for ^Niha, 254 ». 2
1329, 254
lib, 254
Xjfs*, 78
ki;s, 7°
jj, 58 ». 12
J.P
J**. 17s
np, 185 ». 13
t^i/' 136^.3
rjj7, 185 ». 13
*-n_j7, 185 ». 13
^viU^rffli', 63 #. 10
j£, 114 ». 7
^, 117 *. 6
2SAJ.1, 7 1
^3^, 80
a-^b, 258
cinS, xix. ». 3, 258,
258 n. 4
iy. 6 9
ii'lj, 67, 69
3*6, 258, 258 ». 1.
D'OI?, xix. ». 3, 258, 258,
n. 3
3 ,
^J, 258
D" 1- !^, 258 ». 3
*U 82
^,81
Jas- i_/J«-*> 2 33 >*•
"UO, 198 n. 5
<*li] (--j* xxi
&*l^.> 70
D'HJSD, 258 n. 8
*;£/*" 7 °
i^«? 83
■a >•
■ /£-» 2 54
*2>ffip, 254
£"*-*' 2 54
OSBJD, 254
J-a-o, 258 «. 8
y*^> 79
JJ^J^i 7 1
l/*lj.*jt«, 63 7Z. 4
£)ai^, 64 u, 8
„> 3
,j> 8 3
pDN-^toa, 52 ». 2
j*i, 227 ». 3
Ji». 2 54
is^j, 7 1
ic«jjaj, 71
<wa, 47> 70
s ; ]^a, 7°
<u^, 7 1
d^j. 7 1
us' '
^H' 8 3
jjj, 78
\*"j>„ - ?"jb 79
' u, 83
Jlr-
V' 79
&, 78
cy
U&, 80
UJJ'J
*
W 79
32T, 254
ni^3-im% 254
©o-3ar>, 254
Swpar;, 253
^.» 8 °
uM' 7l
Ujfi' 7 1
l£^v4J, 82
hii^A], 208 «. 1
PHILOLOGICAL INDEX
281
AJmOYfT, 198 n. 4
RpRp, Rp&p6T, 84 *. 1
JUUS.?\T, 84 *. 1
JHA.TOI, \z n. 15
XtOpT, 84 n. 1
fj
^' 8 °
47
I) = i 9 8
' F [W]' |r ,wj» + 8 ' 2 +9
1,83
ra
^, 206
^ffi°'
(XSSI-
1-
207 «. 1
82
1 ^ *k v +8 *• s
£5 -, Q^£l
^J»^ IS!' 47 ' 80
J~^ 82
JP^82
j-ri' 8
1 * 1'
12 ». 3
a
^
., 81
1^' 8 °
80
f, 205 ». 3
T 1 $& 2o6
p| 8 3
mpp
,83
y , 82
r~sn
a
,83
n
n „ , _
mil 1 1 7 n
11'
114 n. s
111
42 ff. 15
AM/W 8^
k &ls3' k -> I' 227 " 3
Jx^ X I I AftAA/V\
AMWi V
o y, 205 «. 3
<=>, 83
<= i => J j£ 1 si* !' xix "' 2 ' 46, 8o ' 258
m lk?l l ^f 47
- S©' 205
2 O
H7
282
nn f
IV
P
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
/WVW\ £)
AAA/WS VQi 82
ft 83
MM?1,^47
zl
, 227 n. 3
ra^l ^ ,47
1 1 1 1
u
D
D Jf I
CHH3'
1 ^' 8 °
^ I) 1 2' 48 *■
>8z
5
1^| V |D^I, 46
llfiff'" 7 "' 3
}ir,m*
\mwftfwt-"
3
1 1 V ffinf s£ 227 " 3
^S^Sia>^-3
^^ 80 - 6
IV' 194
-Ml,^ 6
^ \ \> 4 6
=i° °1-6
,.z^ 1 s=' 22 7^3
__l( _^ ^^^^ [\/\/)' ^ 3
GENERAL INDEX
Ababdah of Upper Egypt, 24.5
'Abd Allah Ibn Salih, quoted, 240
Abel, C, cited, 80 n. 5
Abukir, 222 «. 5
Abu '1 Hasan, cited, 208 n. 5
Abu '1 Mahasin, 69, 240
Abu Naym, 14, 30
Abu Simbel reliefs, 211, 214., 250
Abusir reliefs, 131, 132, 134.
Abu'Ungar, oasis of, 11 ; ruins at, 32, 32 n. 1
Abu Zuba'ah, 1 75
Abyssinia, absence of blonds in, 4.1
Abyssinians, 45
Acacia, 27
Accaron, 186
Acesander, q uoted, 116 n. ±
Achaei, 216 «. 7
Achaemenes the Satrap, slain by Inarus, 231
"Achor," 186
Adamantius, quoted, 44 n. 1
Adanson, M., cited, 100
Adeben, 152
Adicran, chief of Asbystae, 230
Adjectives, in Berber, 74
Admiralty, British, Charts, 2 nn. 1 and 2,
4 nn. 1 and 3
Adyrmachidae, 101 n. 1 ; claimed descent
from Amphithemis, 257 ; curved swords
of, 147 ; dress of, 118 ; hair of, 133 ;
leg-rings worn by women, 133, 144 ;
marriage customs of, m ; nomadism
of, 91 ; placed by Herodotus, 51 ; by
Pliny, 57 ; by Ptolemy, 61, 64 ; by
Scylax, 54 ; ethnic stability of, 71
Aedemon, revolt of, 234
Aegis of Athena, 128
Aelian, cited, 93, 97, 121 n. 4, 179 n. 10, 180
nn. 1 and 6, 181, 188 ; quoted, 95 n. a
Aerolith, at Tementit, 173
Aeschylus, cited, 201
Aesculapius, cult of, at Balagrae, 185
Aethicus, cited, 42, 69 ; quoted, 42 n. 9
Aethiopia, circumcision in, 140 ; confused
with Libya by Diodorus, 190 n. 8 ; fish-
taboo in, 141 ; ivory and hides from,
102 ; matriarchate in, 112 ; Nygbeni
in, 63
Aethiopian troglodytes, 103
Aethiopians, confused with Libyans by
Herodotus, 230 n. 5 ; arrows of, 145 ;
black and woolly-haired, 51 ; dispute
with Libyans, 49 ; early representations
of, on Greek vases, 261 ; eat locusts,
100 «. 16 ; some ignorant of bows, 248
Aethiopians, Atlantic, choice of kings
among, 114 n. 2
"Aethiopians, White," 60. See Leucae-
thiopes
Aethiopic origin of Libyan writing not
proved, 85
Aezari, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Africa, open to dispossessed Europeans, 226 ;
outbreaks in Roman, 233 ; Sallust's
account of the peopling of, 255 sq.
Africa Minor, defined, xxi ; ethnic shift
toward Egypt from, 226
Africa, North, ram revered in, 197
Africa, North-western, megaliths in, 1 60
Africa, South, Bushman drawings of, 156
African, see Berber, Imushagh, Libyan,
Nomad
Agatharchides, 179
Agathemerus, cited, 59 n. 1
Agathocles, levies war on Carthage, 232 ;
slays Ophelias, 232
Aghlebites, 34 n. 1
Aghmat, rams worshipped between Sus and,
177
Aghurmi, town of, 10
Agisymba, region of, 102
Agriculture, Libyan, 98 sq.
Agrippinus, bishop of Carthage, 235
Agroetas, cited, 54 n. 2, 62, 112, 257;
quoted, 207 n. 2
'Agul, 26
Ahmose I., Nubian campaigns of, 249
Ahmose II., rise of, 230. See Amasis
Air, Territory of, 15, 30
'Akabah es-Sollum = Catabathmus Major,
55
" Akel Amarig," 42 n. 4
Alachroas. See Machryes
Alasit, 234
Alazir, murdered, 231
Alele, 58, 233
Alexander in desert, 200 ; visits Ammonium,
191, 232
Alexandria, taken by 'Amr Ibn el-'Asi,
240
Algeria, rigam of, 247 ; ram-glyph at Bu
Alem in, 196 sq.
El-AIiah, mosaics at, 169
Alimentation of Eastern Libyans, 99 sq.
Alitemnii, choice of rulers, 114 n. 2
Alphabet, Libyan, distribution of, 84, 87
sq. ; origin of, 85 ; table of, 87
Alphabet, Tifinagh, table of, 88
Altars of the Philaeni, 55. See Philaenorum
Arae
Altimira cave, paintings of, 157 n. 1
Amadah, jar-sealing from, 249
Amasis, 230 n. i. ; sends Neith statue to
Cyrene, 207 n. 1
Amazigh, side-locks worn by, 136
Amazons, 112 sq. ; lunate shields of, 148
n. 6
283
Ambrosius, St., cited, 203 n. 5
Amenhotep I., 212 sq. ; sends Usertesen (I.)
to Libya, 212
Amenhotep III. conquers Tehenu, 213
Amentum, use of in Eastern Libya, 146
Amenukal, 115
American army, march of, from Alexandria
to Bombah, 14
Amghar, 115
Ammianus on Libyan cavalry, 151
Ammonians, placed by Herodotus, 54 j
subject to Egypt, 23
Ammonium, Cyrenaic votive columns at,
191 ; Egyptian ascendancy in, 230; ex-
pedition sent against, by Cambyses III.,
174; forms of responses at, 195; in-
habitants agriculturists, 98 ; Libyan
sacra at, 173 ; native princes of, 230 n.
4 ; subject to Persia, 231 ; visited by
Alexander, 232. See Siwah
Amometus, 179 «. 8
" Amon," use of this form, 189 n. 5
Amon, captives presented to, 213 ; grove
of, 198 n. j. ; myths of the Siwan, 189
sq. ; presented with captive kings by
Rameses III., 224 ; priest of, in army
of Hannibal, 117; processions in cultus
of, 156 ; sites anciently named for,
197 sq. ; songs used in worship of, 154 ;
the father of " Apollo," 187 ; worship of
at Memphis, 188 n. 3
Amon, Theban, 191 ; annual progress of in
Libya, 109 ; distinguished from Deus
Fatidicus, 190 sq. ; Sheshonk and, 228
Amon-Gurzil type, 188
Amon-Re, 191 ; bark of, 194 ; hymn of
triumph to, 213
Amor, king of, led captive by Rameses III.,
224
Amorites, Egyptian war with, 224
Ampelius, L., cited, 189 n. 8 ; quoted,
187
Amphithemis, Libyan tribes claimed descent
from, 257 ; mother of Psyllus, 257 ;
nymph-ancestress, 112
Amr Ibn el- As! invades Egypt, 239 ;
marches on Barca, 240 ; second expedi-
tion of, 240 ; makes treaty with Ber-
bers, 240
Amulets, ram's head, 199
Anabucis, 63
Anabus, conspires with Aretaphile, 233 ;
strangled, 233
Anagombri, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Anai glyphs, 103
Anastasi Papyrus, cited, 215 n. 1, 219
Anderson, R. G., cited, 136 ; quoted, 184
Andes, absence of blonds in, 41
284
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Animals, shapes of assumed by Siwan ginn,
172
Animism, 172 sqq. ; Elijah's protest against,
176 n. 2
Aniritae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Antaeus, legend of, 190 n. 1 ; facial char-
acter of, on Euphronius crater, 260 ;
grave of, opened by Sertorius, 187
Antalas marches on Carthage, 239
Anthrax, Libyan trade in, 102
Anticleides, quoted, 188 n.%
Antigonus Carystius, 173 n. 2, 180 «. 6
Antipyrgus, 198
Anysius, hunts down Ausurians, 237
Anzar, the rain, 1 79
Aphrodisias, identification of, 51 n. 11
Aphytis, sanctuary at, 191
Apis, in Marmarica, 51 n. 10 ; Libyan in-
habitants of, consult Siwan Amon, 190
Apollo, fountain of, at Cyrene, 173 ; the
Garamantic, 94 ; Myoctonus, 186 ;
"Apollo," the son of Amon, 187
Apollodorus, cited, 52, 190 n. 1, 206 n. 1
Apollonia, 5 ; cistern at, 171
Apollonius Dyscolus, cited, 53 n. 3, 98 n. 1
Apollonius Rhodius, cited, 201, 207 n. 2
Apotheosis of Libyan kings, 183
Apotomitae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
" Apricot fever," 2 5
Apricots, 26
Apries, sends army against Cyrene, 230
Aptuchus, 185
Apuleius, quoted, 203
Arabia, Greek legend of Sesostris's invasion
of, 212 ; nomadsfrom, 54 n. 2 ; tattooed
hieroduli of, 139 n. 7
Arabian origin of Hamitic languages, theory
of, 73
Arabians of the Negd, hair-dressing of, 136,
137
Arabic, transcription of, viii ; words taken
from, in Berber, 74
Arabs, animistic conception of dust-spirals
by, 175 ; incursion of, into el-Moghreb,
240 ; sweep across N. Africa, 93
Aradion, burial of, 181 ; slain by Probus,
236
Arak el-Emir, Bedawin of, 92
Ararauceles, claimed descent from Amphi-
themis, 257 ; placed by Pliny, 57 ; by
Ptolemy, 62
Arcesilaus I., rule of, 230 n. 3
Arcesilaus II., hat of, 127 ; called Chalepus,
230 n. 6
Arcesilaus III., murdered, 231
Archery, Egyptian at Perire, 217
Architecture, Libyan, 159 sqq.
Arcidophagi, 55
Aretaphile, widow of Phaedimus, 233
Argonautic legend, 186 sq.
Arianism, spread of, 236
Aristaeus, 98
Aristobulus, 200
Aristomachus defeats Berbers, 239
Aristomedon, brother of Arcesilaus II., 230
Aristophanes, cited, 191 n. 5
[Aristotle], cited, 180 n. 6
Arius, the heresiarch, 208
Armatius, engages Libyan marauders, 237
Armenians, 255
Armillae, 132, 138
Arming, ceremonial, in Ausean festival, 204
Arrian, cited, 95, 173, 187, 200
Arrows, Libyan, 145 ; of Neith symbol,
205 n. 3
Artaxerxes I., revolt of Inarus against, 228
Artemidorus, 55
Article, wanting in Berber, 74
Arval Brethren, ritual of the, 204
Aryandes, retreat of, from Cyrenaica, 143 ;
takes Barca, 231
Arzeu, Old, sculpture from, 197
Arzuges, identification of, 68 n. 7
Asbjornsen, P. C, cited, m «. 5
Asbystae, Cyrene founded in territory of,
230 ; houses of, 96 sq. ; identified with
Esbet, 51 ; nomadism of, 91 ; placed
by Herodotus, 52 ; by Ptolemy, 62 ;
by Strabo, 55 ; put themselves under
Egypt, 230 ; used chariots, 149. See
Asbytae, Hasbitae.
Asbytae, 62. See Asbystae, Hasbitae
Asbyte, princess, in De Bello Punico, 1 1 9
n. 6, 148 nn. 1 and 6, 156 ; funeral of,
182 b. 1
Ascherson, P., cited, 28 n. 1
Ash, Libyan god, ix, 1 84
Ashraf, false, 256
Asiatic captives, absence of Neith-symbol
on, 206
Asiatic Sand-dwellers, 211
Asiatics allied with Libyans at Satuna, 151
Asphodelides, 168
Asphodel-wattling, shelters of, 168
Aspirates, permutations of, in Berber, 75
Asses, 95 ; in Eastern Libya, 28, 29 ; used
by Libyans, 96
Assurbanipal, 222 n. 5
Assyrian and Tigr£, 73
Assyrians, animistic conception of atmo-
sphere among, 176
Astacures, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Astarte, Carthaginian deity, 198
Astrakan, Kalmucks of, 168
Astrices, 68 n. 3
Astrologers, Africans noted as, in Roman
times, 176
Asturiani, 64
Aswan stela, quoted, 215
Atarantians, vegetarians, 100 s. 11 ; cursed
the sun, 187 n. 1
Athanasius, St., cited, 197, 198 n. 4
Athena, 187 ; aegis of, 128
"Athena," Ausean, in, 156, 186; com-
pared with Saitic, 206
Athenaeus, cited, 96 nn. 7 and 9, 168 n. 9,
201 n. 3, 203 n. &
Athenians aid Libyans against Persia, 231 ;
kept galley to convey questions to
Siwan oracle, 191
Athribis stela, 27 n. 14, 98 n. 5, 109 n. ^,
217 n. 14, 219
Atlas, revolts in, 233, 234, 235
Atum, Heliopolis, city of, 216
Auctor Incertus, 236 n. 9
Augila, 10, 52 ; dates of, 98 ; manes cultus
at, 178 ; sanctuary of Deus Fatidicus at,
197
Augilae, marriage customs of, in ; placed
by Pliny, 58 ; by Ptolemy, 62
Augmentation of verbal theme in Berber, 74
Augustinus, St., quoted, 16 n. 3, 79 n. 7
Aulad 'All, at Delingat, 3 1 ; nomadism of,
9 1
Aulad Nayl, dowry by prostitution among,
. 1 10 ; marriage customs of, in
Aurelius, St., cited, 232 ; quoted, 68 n. 7
Auschisae, Barca in territory of, 230 ; forts
attributed to, 151, 166 ; nomadism of,
91 ; placed by Diodorus, 56 ; by Hero-
dotus, 52 ; by Ptolemy, 62
Ausean goddess, 203 sqq.
Auseans, clear idea of virginity, 1 1 1 ; council
of the, 114, 115 ; Greek armour used
in religious festivals by, 143 ; hair of,
134 ; marriage customs of, no ; placed
by Herodotus, 52 ; religious sham
fights of, 143, 156 ; women wore rings
of leather, 144 ; yearly festival of, 91
Ausigda, 52
Ausonius, D. Magnus, cited, 197 n. 6
Ausuriani, 71 ; defeated by Anysius, 237 ;
incursions of, 93 ; in late Roman times,
68 ; revolt of, 237 ; and Arzuges,
68 n. 7
Austur. See Ausuriani
Austuriani. See Ausuriani
Autiman, associated with Mercurius, 185
Autuchus. See Aptuchus
Auzui, 93
Avezac, d', cited, 65 n. 1, 237, 238
Axe [-battle], Libyan, 147
Axomis, bravery of clergy of, 237
Aymard, cited, 16 n. 3, 135, 147 n. a
Ayn, defined, xxi
Ayn el-Bahari, 172
Ayn el-Isgawah, 172
Ayn Musa, 172
Ayn Sefrah, rifcam at, 247
Ayns, superstitions concerning at Siwah,
172
Ayra, G., cited, 20
Azgar, law of succession of, 112 ; confedera-
tion, 114 sq. ; Imushagh, 174
Azilis. See Aziris
Aziris, 61 n. 6 ; colonized, 229 ; Greek
colonists brought to Cyrene from, 291
Ba'al Eshmun, worshipped at Balis, 185
Ba'al Haman, Carthaginian cult of, 198
Ba'alim, the Carthaginian, 198
"Baal's Land," 191 n. 1
Ba'al-Zebub, 186
Babelon, E., cited, xv
Babylonia, fertility of, 98
Bacales, placed by Herodotus, 52 ; nomad-
ism of, 91
Bacatae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
BAGS, cited, 24 n. 2
Bags of leather, Libyan, 152
Bahariah Oasis, 11 ; dialect of Manshiah el-
'Aguzah in, 76 ; population of, 32
Bahr el-Ghazal, Nuers of, 96 «. 9
Bahreyn oasis, 1 1 ; sacred hill south of,
173 ; Siwan army overwhelmed near,
"75
Bain, R. N., cited, 176 n. 2
Baker, S. W., cited, 175 n. 1
Balacris or Balagrae, 185
Balbus, L. Cornelius, triumph of, 59, 234
n. 7 ; expedition to Phazania, 105, 233
Balearic burial, 182 n. 2
" Baleus," cult of, 185
Balis, 185
Balkans, Thracians arrive in, 226
Ball, J., cited, 32, 202 ». 11
Ball, J. and Beadnell, H. J. L., cited, n, 32
Balla, 234
Baneteren, 112 n. 3
Baniurae-Gaetuli, 68 n. 13, 143 n. 14
BAR, cited, viii, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 93, 95,
96, 98, 101, 109, no, 112, 113, 114,
IJ 5' IJ 7> I22 > I2 7> '3°; 140, 141, 142,
145, 146, 147, 148 n. 3, 149, 150, 151,
153, 16S, 177, 211, 212, 213, 214, 215,
216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 221, 222, 223,
224, 225, 227 n. 3, 228, 229, 251, 252
Baracum, 234
Barbary States, aaghartt in, 154
Barca, 62 ; Alazir, king of, 231 ; brothers
of Arcesilaus II. withdraw to, 230 ;
ethnic name derived from, 66 ; Libyans
of, treat with Harcoris, 232 ; native
character of, 177 n. 4, 230, 231 n. 3 ;
origin of, 230 taken by Aryandes,
231 ; women of, abstained from flesh
of swine, 177
Barcaei, in late Roman times, 66
Barceans, Libyan character of, 177 «. 4 ;
captive, settled in Asia, 231
Barcitae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Bark, vessels of, 153
Barkah, use of term by Arabic authors,
66 ?z. iz ; Luatah Berbers of, 240
Barkah el-Homrah, 4
Barley, 26
Barrebi glyphs, 103
Barrows in Libya, 181
Barth, H., cited, xiv, xx, 14, 94, 95 n. 1, 159,
161 nn. 3 and 6, 162, 168, 174, 208 nn. 2
and 6 ; quoted, 162 n. 2, 163 n. 1, 166
n. 1 ; his explanation of a glyph from
Teli-Sagha, 94 sq.
Bary, E. von, cited, 136, 159, 179 ; quoted,
136
Baskets, Libyan, 152, 153
Basque and Berber, 73
Bassachitae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Basset, R., cited, 69, 70, 70 n. 1, 78 n. 3, 80,
173, 176, 183
Bataks, in n. 4
Bateman, G. W., cited, 176 n. 2
Bates, O., cited, 10, 29 n. 3, 78, 96 n. 9, 145
«• 7. 173, 17+ «-4» 177
Bathing, ceremonial, 172 sq.
Battiad kings traded in silphium, 28
Battle-axes, Libyan, 147
" Battus," 116 n. 2
Battus I., rule of, 230 n. 2
Battus II., accession of, 230 n. 2
Baux, A., cited, xiv
Bazin, H., cited, 139
Beadnell, H. J. L., cited, 11, 24, 32. See
Ball, J.
Beads, Libyan, 131
Beards, among Eastern Libyans, 137
Beasts, wild, of E. Libya, 29
Bedawin, of Sinai, 122 ». 2 ; semi-sedentary,
92
Beechey, F. W. and H. W., cited, 63, 89,
157, 161, 162, 163 ; quoted, 161, 162,
163
Bees among Libyans, 98
Be^as, 45 ; language of, 73
Behnasa, Berbers in province of, 69
Beken, 47, 224 ; identified with Bacales, 51
El-Bekri, cited, 177, 188, 197, 208 n. 5, 257
Belisarius, rewards Tripolitan chiefs, 116
Belts, Libyan, 126
Benghazi, 5, 6, 30, 198 ; distance to Cape
Passero, 1 8 n. 2
Benhazera, M., cited, 174, 178
Beni Hasan paintings, 96, 108 n. 1, 113,
129, 134, 135, 147, 153
Beni Mzab rain-making, 179
Benin, contracted burials in, 182
Beni-Ummiah, law of, 112
Benu 'Abdah, 70
Benu Ballar, 69
Benu Barkin, 70
Benu Demmer, 71
Benu Gemmaz, 70
Benu Gheras, 70
Benu Hadidi, 70
Benu Haggag, 70
Benu el-Hakem, 70
Benu Katufah, 70
Benu Kazrun, 71
Benu Magdul, 70
Benu Mahresah, 70
Benu Malu, 70
Benu Mohammad, 69
GENERAL INDEX
Benu Mohtar, 70
Benu Nizar, 69
Benu Thahlan, 69
Benu Walid, 70
Benu Warkan, 70
Benu el-Wasuah, 70 n. .
Benu Yahyah, 70
" Berber" alphabet, 85
Berber and Coptic, 84 n. 1
Berber and Egyptian, fusion of, 84 ; words
compared, 81 sqq.
Berber, converts to Judaism, 235 n. 1 ; de-
fined, xxi ; doctrine of astral animation,
176
Berber language, continuity of, 90 ; dialects
of, 74 ; eastern dialects of, 84 ; general
character of, 74 ; permutations in, 74
sqq. ; persistence of, 241 ; relation to
Egyptian, 81 ; survival of, 73 ; tran-
scription of, viii
Berber place-names, eastern and western
compared, 77 ; in Eastern Libya, 67
sqq.
Berber, Siwan, spoken at Manshiah el-
Aguzah, 48 n. 5
Berber. See African, Hamitic, Imushagh,
Libyan, Nomads, Proto-Berber.
Berbers, adored the sun, 187 ; ancient,
courage of, 151 sq. ; become Semiticized,
240 ; brachycephalic, 39 ; code of
honour, 35 ; cruciform devices among,
187 ; defeated by Aristomachus, 239 ;
descent of, according to Arab writers,
69; fondness for intoxicants, 34 ; fusion
of, with Nordic blonds, 160 ; get on
well with Jews, 208 ; heretical Mo-
hammadans, 208 ; hospitality of, 37 ;
identified with Philistines by el-Bekri,
257 ; in Cyrenaica, 70 ; in pre-Islamic
Tripolitana, 79 ; modern, beginning
of history of, 240 ; huts of, 170 ; Mos-
lemic, heresies of, 241 ; of E. Libya,
physique of, 33, 34 ; treatment of
women, 37 ; theory of Bertholon con-
cerning, 74
Berbers, Luatah, 69 n. 6
Berbrugger, L. A., cited, 197
Berger, P., cited, 84 n. 3, 86
Beris, 1 2 ; at north end of natural road to
Derr in Nubia, 49
Bernard, F., cited, 160 «. i.
Bertholon, L., cited, 74, 139, 177, 206,
207 n. t
Beyt el-Waly relief, 131, 132, 214, 215 ;
revamped Syrian head in, 2 1 5 n. 6
Biarnay, S., cited, 78 n. 3
Bible, cited, 128 n. 3, 176 n. ±, 198 n. 3,
258 nn. 1 to 8 incl.
El-Biladuri, quoted, 69 n. 6, 240
Bilmah, 15
Binothris, 112 «. 3
Biophis, 1 t 2 «. 3
Bipennis, 148
Bir, defined, xxi
Bir Ahmed, ceremonial bathing in, 172
Bir el-Bashir, 198 n. 2
Birds, taboo against, 176, 177; trained by
Psaphon, 186
Birkah, defined, xxi
Bisayas, in n. 4
Bisharin language, 73
Bishops, African, council of, 236
Biskrah, crania from, 246
Bissuel, P. H., cited, 42
Blastophoenices, 55
Blau, O., cited, 85 •
Blemmyes, active in Egypt, 237 sq. ; allied
with Zenobia's generals, 236 ; give
285
hostages to Maximinus, 238 ; harried
by Mazices, 238 ; opposed by Nobatae,
236 ; plunder Egypt, 238
Blonds, Italian, 41 ; Nordic, 169 ; not due
to altitude, 41
Boars eaten in the Atlas, 93 n. 7
Bocchus, betrays Jugurtha to the Romans,
37
Bochart, S., cited, 52 n. 8
Boeotian type of shield in Africa, 148
Boii, burial customs of, 182
Boin, 92, 234
Bombah Is., 5 ; not the Greek Plataea, 229
«. 8
Bombah, Gulf of, 4, 6 ; fort in, 166 sqq.
" Bongem." See Bu Negem
Booths. See Mapalia
Borchardt, L., cited, xiv, xv, xvi, 48, 95, 184,
211 ; quoted, 250 n. 3
Borghu, contracted burials in, 182
Borium, synagogue at, 208
Borku, 15 ; huts of, 170 ». 1
Bornu, huts of, 170 ». x
Borsari, F., cited, 105
Bosman, W., cited, 112
Botti, A., cited, 76 n. 2
Bourville, V. de, cited, 84 h. 3, 89 n. 4
Bowmen on " C Group " jar, 248
Bows, ceremonial, of Nuers, 145 n. 7 ; Lib-
yan, 94, 145
Bracelets, Libyan, 132
Brachycephalic element in North Africa,
39. 4>
Bread baked in the ashes, 100
Breasted, J. H., cited, viii, 47, 49 n. 4, 112
n. 3, 122, 139 n. 6, 214 n. 5, 215, 217
n. 5, 219 n. 5, 220, 220 n. 1, 221, 224
n. 1, 227, 227 n. 3 ; quoted, 210 n. 2,
215, 215 nn. 2 and 7
" Bride of the rain," 176
Bridles, primitive character of Libyan, 159
Brinton, D. G, cited, 73
Broca, P., cited, 41
Bronze Age, abandonment of Spanish sites
of, 226
Brown, R., cited, 42 n. 4
Browne, W. H., cited, 29 it. 3
Brugsch, H., cited, 40, 46, 49, 114 ,,.5,
139 n. 5, 205, 205 n. 2, 217 n. 1, 222
n. 5, 251 n. 1
Bu 'Alem glyph, 196 sq. ; ram of, 157 «. 1
Bubastis, Sheshonk proclaims himself
Pharaoh at, 228
Bubeium, 59, 233
Buckets of leather, Libyan, 152
Bueb Bay, Libyan forts near, 1 60
Buhen, jar-sealings from, 249
Bull. Arch. Inst. Am., cited, 231 ». 3
Bull. Giner. Th&apeut. Me'dic. Chirugic,
28 n. 1
Bull. Nub., cited, xiv, 250 n. 1
Bull. Soc. Anthr., 41 «. 3
Bull, solar animal, 188
Buluba, 234
Bu Negem, 30
Burchardt, M., 89 n. 6
Burdah Is. See Bombah Is.
Burials, "C Group," 246; contracted, 182,
246 ; customs of E. Libyans, 181 sqq.
"dissected," 182 n. 2; extended, 182
Garamantian, 181 ; Nasamonian, 181
sea-, 176
Burrows, R. M., cited, 122
Bushmen, drawings by, 156
Busiris vase, 261 n. 1
Buyuwawa family, names of, 227 n. 3 ; rise
of, 227 sq.
Buzeans, placed by Ptolemy, 61
286
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Byaei, their government, 112
Byzaces, 55 ; placed by Ptolemy, 64
Byzacites, 64
Byzacium, Leuathae invade, 238
Byzantine victory over Leuathae, 238
Byzes, claimed descent from Amphithemis,
257
Cabales. See Bacales
Caduceus-like object on " C Group " jars,
249
Caesar, his engagements with African
cavalry, 151, 152 ; cited, 97, 146, 149
n. 15, 150 ; quoted, 171
Caetra, 148 ; used in Spain, 148 n. 5
Cagnat, R., cited, 201 n. 1 ; 203 n. 3
Cairo Column, 109 nn. 2 and 3
Calamis, statue of Amon made by, 191
Calassanti-Motylinski, A. de, cited, 78 n. 3
Callias, cited, 179 n. 10, 180 n. 5
Callimachus, cited, 52, 97, 173 n. 6, 204
n. 2 ; quoted, 40 n. 3
[Callisthenes], cited, 195
Cambe, factory of established by Sidonians,
229 n. 6
Cambodian priests, 1 1 1 n. 4
Cambyses III., army of, said to have been
overwhelmed in sandstorm, 231 ; ex-
pedition of against Ammonium, 174,
175 ; against Stwah, 190 ; takes tribute
from Libyans, 230
Camel, first appearance in African history,
28, 28 n. 3, 97 ; for desert travel, 16 sq.
Cameleers, Arabian, serving with Xerxes,
149
Camels, Libyans fighting behind lines of,
151
Caminos, 161 n. 6
Campana, G. P., cited, 169 n. 10
Campasantes. See *Gamphasantes
"Camp-stool" in Ghadames relief, 159
Canaan, 257
Candacae, Meroitic, 112 n. 2
Cannae, Libyan mercenaries at, 152
Canopic branch of Nile, 220
Capart, J., cited, 122 n. 8, 215 ». 2
Capella, Martianus, cited, 53 ». 7, 173 n. 12,
187 n. 12, 189 n. 8, 190 ; quoted, no
n. 3, 148 n. i
Capitolinus, Julius, cited, 235
Caps, 116, 149
Capsa, 58
Capsitani, placed by Pliny, 58
Captives in second Libyan war of Rameses
III., 224
Caravan-robbing, 104 sq.
Carbuncles in Libyan trade, 49, 102 ; super-
stition concerning, 189 «. 3
Carchedonian stones, 49. See Carbuncles
Carian sea-power, 226
Carnivals, African, 203
Carob trees, 27
Carthage, attacked by Agathocles, 232 ;
council of, 236 ; cultus of Deus Fatidicus
at, 198 ; destroyed, 232 ; factories of,
102 ; founded, 229 ; Libyans in service
of, 232 ; not reached by expedition of
Chosroes, 239 ; Numidians about, 256 ;
taken by Vandals, 237 ; Via Mappa-
liensis in, 169
Carthaginian captain, self-sacrifice of, 199 ;
factories, 229 ; imports at Tharrus,
199 ; trade in Atlantic Libya, 103
Carthaginians, drive out Doric Greeks from
Cinyps, 231
Carton, L., cited, 188
Caryotis, prepared from fruit of palm, 99
Casati, G, cited, 182 n, 5
Casilinum, Narses victory over the Franks
at, 218 n. 1
Castanets, 155
Castiglioni, C. O., cited, 58 n. 7, 59 n. 2,
78 n. 4
Catabathmus Major = 'Akabah es-Sollum,
55, 57, 61, 225 n, 7
Catal. Muse'e Lwvigerie, cited, 188
Cateia, 146 ; a Libyan weapon, 143
Cato, M. Porcius (Uticensis), army of,
attended by Psylli, 180 n. 4 ; march
along the Syrtic coast, 14, 233
Cattle, earliest evidence on, 95 sq. ; Libyan
superstition concerning, 176 n. 7 ; long-
horned, 95
Caudel, M., cited, 240, 240 n. 8
Cauterization among Libyans, 113
Caves, inhabited by Eastern Libyans, 168
Celsus, cited, 179
Celsus, Furius, quells the Mauri, 235
Celtiberian alphabet, 86
Cemeteries, Punic, 198 n. 5, 199
Cephalae Promontorium = Ras Mizratah, 55
Cerealis, Strageus of the Pentapolis, coward-
ice of, 237 n. 6
Cerne, port of, 102 n. 3 ; trade at, 103 n. 6
Cerophaei, 64
" C Group," and Temehu, 249 «. 3 ; ap-
parent Libyan origin of, 251 ; archae-
ology of, 246 sqq. ; a southern Libyan
branch, 251 sq. ; graves, shell beads
from, 132 ; people of Nubia, 245 sqq. ;
plastic figures of, 250
Chabas, F., cited, 40, 220
Chad Road, 14, 30, 101, 107 ; oases of, 12,
/3
Chaillu, P. du, cited, 112 ». 4
Chairs, of E. Libyans, 153
Chaminos, 161 n. 6
Champollion, J. F., cited, 119 «. 8, 126
tin. 1 and 3
Character, classical opinion of African, 37 ;
Ibn Haldun on Berber, 37 sq.
Charax Iscina, 208 «. 1
Chariots, Libyan, 149
Chase, G. H., 261 n. 1
Chattani, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Chettaea, 61, 62
Chiefs, grades of, 115 ; duties of, 115 sq. ;
Tripolitan, confirmed in office by Beli-
sarius, 116 ; choice of, by the Alitemnii,
114.fi. z ; among the Hausas, 195 n. 1
Chieftainship, associated with priesthood,
117 sq. ; Libyan, semi-hereditary, 114
Children, Libyan, in Sa-hu-re relief, 125
Chi, Magas of Cyrene at, 232, 232 n. 4
Cholera, 25
Chosroes, subdues Egypt, 239
Christianity, forced on Libyans by Justinian,
238 ; in E. Libya, 208 ; in N. Africa,
208 sq., 134 ; in mountains of Nufusa,
240
Chronicon Paschale, cited, 66, 68 ; quoted,
64 n. 4
Chronology, Egyptian, xxii
Chronicon anni p. Chr. 334, cited, 65, 68
Chrysostomus, Dio, cited, 95 ». 8, 130 n. 1 ;
quoted, 116 n. n
*Cidamensii, 63
CIG, cited, 231 n. 3
CIL, cited, 42 n. 9, 173 nn. 3, 4, 5, 176 n. 1,
185 nn. 4, 6, 187 nn. 4 to 7 incl., 188 n.
7, 201 nn. 1, 17, 202 n. 8, 203 nn. 3, 4
Cillaba, 58, 233
Cimon, death of foretold by Stwan oracle,
Cinithii, 58 ; in late Roman times, 68 ;
placed by Ptolemy, 64
Cinyphii, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Cinyps, 63 ; western boundary of Macae,
54; Dorian colony on the, 231 ; fer-
tility of, 98
Circumcision, among Sherdan, 140 ; cere-
monial bathing before, 172
CIS, cited, 198 n. 4
Cisippades, placed by Ptolemy, 57
Cisterns in Mariut, 171 ; on Seal Is., 171 f
in Marmarica, 7 n. 2 ; Libyan, 171
Cistvaens in Tripolitana, 160
Cities, mysterious desert, 200 n. 3
Citrus wood, trade in, 102
Claudian, cited, 42, 66, 97, 146, 150, 197
n. 6 ; quoted, 146
Clearchus of Soli, cited, 139
Clemens Alexandrinus, cited, 195 n. 5, 201
n. 3
Cleopatra, Libyan serving-women of, 40 ;
Octavius sends Psylli to save, 180
Clipeus, 148
Cloth, of good quality scarce in Libya, 120
Clubs used in Ausean sham-fights, 143
Cnethi, 64 n. 4
Coasts, N. African and S. European con-
trasted, 13 sq.
Coats of leather, 148
Coinage, supposed Libyan, 106 sq.
Collars, Libyan, 131
Collignon, R., cited, 43 n. 1
Collignon, R., and Deniker, J., cited, 42
Colonists, Greek, at Plataea, 229
Colour, of Aethiopians, 51 ; of pure Ha-
mites, 39
Combat, ceremonial, at Lake Tritonis,
204 sq.
Commodus, Libyan uprisings under, 235
Communism, Berber spirit of, 115
Confederation in second Libyan war of
Rameses III., 224
Coniferous trees, 27
Constantinople sculptures, 148, 149
Contracted burials, 182 sq.
Contra-Pselchis. See Kubban
Copper, in the Atlas, 143 ; in " C Group"
graves, 250
Coptic and Berber, 84 n. 1
Coptos Red Sea road, 200 n. 4
Cordage of palm-bast, 26 ; Libyan, 153
Corippus, cited, 64 n. 8, 66, 66 nn. 5, 10,
67, 68, 69, 98, 116, 117, 119, 144,
146, 146 n. 4, 147, 148, 184, 185, 187,
187 n. n, 188 ; quoted, 66, 116, 116
n. n, I27,'i28, 144 n. 1, 146, 147 n. 7,
185, 188
Cosson, E., cited, 26 n. 1
Cow, flesh tabooed, 96 «. 9 ; Neith associated
with, 206 ; taboo against, 177 ; cultus
of, among " C Group " people, 250
Cowper, H. S., cited, 160 n. 3
Crania, " C Group " and others, 245 sq.
Crassus, Cornelius, defeats Gaetuli, 234
Crates, 160 n. 3
Crates Pergam, cited, 166 n. 3
Creta-Cyrene, or Creta-et-Cyrene, Roman
province, 18
Crete, early scripts of, 85, 86 ; geographical
relations of, to E. Libya, 18, 101 n. 5 ;
Peleset from, 220 ; thalassocracy of, 226
Criophagi, 55
Crocodiles, said to have been charmed in
Libya, 179 n. 8
Croesus, consults oracle at Ammonium, 1 9 1
Cromlechs, scarcity on Libyan coast, 160
Cronus, structures attributed to, 166
Cross, in Egyptian representations of Lib-
yans, 209 ; in Berber ornamentation,
208 ; on a Targi shield, 208 n. 6
GENERAL INDEX
287
Cross-bands, figure with, on " C Group "
jar, 24.8 ; in Libyan dress, 132
Crows, serve as guides to Alexander, 200
Cruda Maurica, 127
CSJ, cited, 96 n, 9, 145 n. 7, 173 ,1. 1, 174
n. 4, 177 n. 9, 210 n. 1
Ctesias, Cnidius, 231
Cups, Libyan, 144, 152
Curtius, Q., cited, 106, 173, 187, 194 n. 2 ;
quoted, 154, 154 n. 3, 193
Cushions, leather, Libyan, 152
Cybele, 201
Cydamus, 58, 92, 159, 233. See Ghadames.
Cylices, Libyan, 153
Cyniphius, 148 n. 1
Cynophagy, in modern Africa, 177. See
Dogs
Cypress, 27
Cyprianus, St., cited, 143, 236 ; collected
funds for plundered Christians, 236
n. 1 ; quoted, 183 n. 3
Cypriote syllabary, 86 ; inscription in, 84 n. 3
Cyprus, Athenian fleet from, 231
Cyraunis, gold found in, 142 «. 8 ; grapes
of, 98 sq. ; olives of, 99
Cyrenaean tribute to Cambyses III., 230
n. 10
Cyrenaic, Greeks and Libyans, 261 ; coins,
head of Deus Fatidicus on, 191
Cyrenaica, 62 ; Aptuchus of, 185 ; a
Roman province, 233 ; bequeathed to
Rome, 232 ; burials with horses in,
182 «. 3 ; citrus wood from, 102 ;
coastal plain of, 4 ; goats in, 96 ; har-
bours of, 6 ; Judaic uprising in, 235 ;
locusts in, 29 ». 5 ; misgoverned, 237
n. 6 ; physiography of, 3, 4 ; pines in,
151 n. 9 ; place of muster for Libyans
of Merneptah invasion, 50 ; raids into,
71 ; sculptures in southern, 158; south-
west, forts in, 160, 161 ; successive
crops of, 98 ; topography, 3 sqq. ; trees
of, 27 ; water-supply of, 5 sq.
Cyrene, 62 ; a centre of chariotry, 149 ;
aids Inarus (?), 231 ; besieged by
Mazices, 237 ; early chronology of,
230 n. 2 ; founded in territory of
Asbystae, 230 ; fountain of Apollo at,
173 ; Greeks brought from Aziris to,
201 ; secession of brothers of Arcesilaus
II. from, 230 ; statue of Neith sent to,
207 ». 1
Cyrene and Cyrenaica, Greek epithets ap-
plied to, 97
Cyreneans, defeated by Libyans, 230 ; story
related by certain, 104
Daggers, Libyan, 147
Dahlah, 48 n. 5, 116 sq. ; meteorology of,
23 sq. ; oasis of, n ; population of,
32, 33 ; stela, 117
Dakkah cemetery, 250 ; " C Group " pots
from, 248 sq.
Danakils, 45
Dances, Libyan, 155 sq. ; war-, 155
"Dancing-bows" of the Nuers, 145 n. 7
Dapsolibyans, 179 n. 2
Darae-Gaetuli, 68 n. 13
Darb, defined, xxi
Darb el-Arba'in, 16, 30
Darb el-Hag, 13, 14
Dardistan, Yeshkhuns of, 41 n. 7
Daremberg and Saglio, cited, 169
Daressy, G., cited, xiii, xv, xvi, 80 «. 6, 193,
193 n. 2
Darius I. begins temple at Hargah, 231
Dasibari, 234
Date-palm, in E. Libya, 26 sq., 99
Davies, N. de G., cited, xiv, xv, xvi, 94 n. 1,
251
Dea Coelestis, 203
Dea Dia, invoked by Arval Brethren, 204
Dea Nutrix, title for Dea Coelestis, 203
Dead, consultation of, 194 ; swearing by,
183 sq.
Debris, 58, 59, 233, 234
Dechelette, J., cited, 209 «. 3
Ded, conquered by Rameses III., 221 ; name
appears twice in Egyptian annals, 221
Defloration among primitive peoples, in
«. 4
Delattre, Pere, cited, 198
Delingat, resort of the Aulad Alt, 31
Delia Cella, cited, 89 n. 5
Delphic oracle, Libya called nri\orp6<j)os by, 96
Delta, connection of Ausean Athena with
Neith of the, 205 sqq. ; Inarus, a Lib-
yan dynast of the, 231 ; Libyan dynasts
of, no, 115, 177 ; Libyan families in,
228 ; Libyan infiltration into the, 213,
225 ; penetration of, in the time of
Rameses III., 220 ; Petrie's claim to
have found Tifinagh inscriptions in,
253 ; rise of Libyan settlers in the,
227 sq. ; stelae of Libyan settlers in the,
184
Denham, Oudney, and Clapperton, cited,
14, 15, 184 n. 2
Deniker, J., cited, xv, 95, no, in n. 4, 132
n. 2, 133 n. 1, 168, 226
Dennis, G, cited, 182 ». 3
Dentals, permutations of in Berber, 75
Denyen, 220
Derbukkah, Sudanese, 155
Dernah, 30 ; distance from Cape Krio, 18 ;
situation of, 5, 79 ; so-called Libyan
inscription from, 84 «. 3
Derr in Nubia, at south end of natural
road from Beris, 49 ; Libyans in vicinity
of, 252 ; road from Hargah to, 250 sq.
Deny, D. E., quoted, 245, 246 n. 2
Desert, loneliness of life in, 35 ; marches, 35 ;
monotony of, 34
Desolation, rites of, 203
Dessau, H., cited, 203
Detlefsen, D., cited, 65 n. 1
Deus Coelestis, 201 sqq.
Deus fatidicus, 189 sqq. ; confused with
Deus Coelestis, 202 ; god of travellers,
200
Deus Frugum, Libyan, 202
Deyr el-Ballas, 252 ; Pan-graves at, 245
Dialects, Berber, 74 ; surviving in E. Libya,
7 6 . .
Diamagnetic burials, 181
Dio Cassius, cited, 179, 180, 233, 234, 235
Diocletian, calls Nobatae into Egypt, 236
Diodorus Siculus, cited, 24, 56, 112, 112
n. 2, 113, 116, 143, 144, 146, 149, 151
n. +, 161, 166, 168, 173, 187, 190, 194
n. 2, 212, 231, 231 H. 1, 232, 232 n. 6 ;
quoted, 105, 113, 154, 160, 190 n. 8
Diogenes Laertius, cited, 181
Dionysius Periegetes, cited, 97, 190 n. 5,
202 n. 9 ; quoted, 52 n. 1, 62 n. 1, 106 n. 5
Dionysus, aided by a ram, 200 ; legend of
Amon and, 189; mysterious city of,
200 n. 3
Discera, 59, 234
Dissected burials, 182 «. -1
Dis Severus, 185
Divination, among E. Libyans, 178 sq.
Dogs among the Libyans, 28, 97, 114 n. 3 ;
eaten at Kabes, 177 ; eaten in Middle
Ages, 177 ; with Berber names on
stela of Intef I., 80 sq.
Dolapes, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Dolichocephaly, Hamitic, 41
Dolmens, scarcity of in E. Libya, 160
Domitian, revolt of Nasamones in time of,
106, 234
Donatists, Berbers, 208
Dor, a Thekel town, 224, 226
Doric Greeks driven from Cinyps River by
Carthaginians and Macae, 231
Doughty, C. M., cited, 16, 122, 136, 178 ;
quoted, 31 n. 2, 100, 122 ». 2, 136,
136 n. 2
Doutte, E., cited, 178 «. 2, 179, 203
Dress, Libyan, 118 sqq. ; women's 113 sq.
Drum, double-headed, 155
Duffah, defined, xxi
Dllmichen, I., cited, 48 n. 5
Duncan, P. See Petrie
Dura, 26
Duris Samius, cited, 155, 203
Dussaud, R., cited, 122
Dussaud, R. and Macler, F., cited, 254 n. 1
Dust, substitute for water in pledging faith,
179
Duveyrier, H., 128 ; cited, xv, 21, 22, 23, 26,
34. 3 6 > 37. 38 n. 2, 42, 43, 100, 104,
107, 112, 113, 143, 152 n. 3, 159, 160
«. 2, 174, 176 k. 5, 178, 183 ; quoted,
31 n. 1, 103 n. 4, 143 «. 4
Dysentery, 25
Ear-ornaments, Libyan, 130 sq.
Eaton, General, march of, across Marmarica,
14
Ebony, Libyan trade in, 102
Eggs, ostrich, from Etruscan tombs, 101 ;
in Libyan tribute, 94 n. 1
Egypt, aided by Lubim, 258 ; animistic
view of stars in, 176 ; a Roman pro-
vince, 233 ; Aryandes satrap of, 231 ;
chariots of, 149 ; Fatimite invasion of,
72 ; forces of Zenobia in, 236 ; fractured
arms of women in Predynastic, 205
n. 1 ; Graeco- Roman terra -cottas of,
196 ; invaded by 'Amr Ibn el-Asi, 239 ;
mediaeval, Berbers in, 69 sq. ; modern
funerals in, 195 ; origin of Libyan
invasions of, 226 ; raided by Blemmyes
and Mazices, 238 ; raided from the
west, 71 ; rock glyphs of, 156 «. 4;
state in time of Merneptah invasion,
216 ; in time of invasion under
Rameses III., 220 ; subdued by
Persians, 239 ; treaty made by Harcoris
of, 231 ; under Libyan Pharaohs, 228 ;
zagharit in, 1 54
Egyptian, cult of Mnevis, 188 ; expedition
against Cyrene, 230; fortress, "C
Group " pottery in, 249 n. 3 ; funeral
scenes, teiniv in, 194 ; influence at
Ghadames, 159 ; language, relation to
Berber, 81 ; oases, arrow-heads from,
145 ; occupation of Siwah, 189 ; origin
of Libyan writing not proved, 85 ;
pottery, owners' marks on, 85, 86 ;
recruits from south of First Cataract,
211 ; religion, compared with Libyan,
207 ; superstition in regard to corpses,
202 ; transcription of Libyan personal
names, 80
Egyptian and Berber, 79 sqq. ; fusion of, 85
Egyptians, 45 ; burial of Predynastic, 182 ;
call Zeus " Amoun," 190 ; circumcised,
140 ; defeat Tehenu and Rebu, 212 ;
defeated by Cyrenaic Greeks, 230 ;
early fused with Libyans, 246 ; held
swine unclean, 189 ; in Ammonium,
230 ; tale of outlawed, 200
288
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Egyptian Government Almanac, 32 nn. <., 5 ;
maps, 7 ; Meteorological Report for 1908,
23 k. 2
Ekbet, 46, 47 ; beaten by Thutmose I., 213 ;
position of unknown, 51
Ekwesh, identification of, 2 1 6 ». 7 ; in
alliance with Meryey, 150 ; join the
Libyans against Egypt, 216
Elaeones, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Elbesti, 62 n. 6
Elijah, protest of, against animism, 176 n. 2
Emporia, Carthaginian established, 229
" Enharit Kurzala," 5
Enipi, 59, 233
Eperus, native fort at, 161
Epidaurus and Balagrae, cults of, 185 n. 15
Eponyms, Libyan, 257
Eratosthenes, quoted, 206 n. 1
Erebidae, a part of the Lotophagi, 54 ;
placed by Ptolemy, 63
Erg, defined, xxi
Erg el-Edeyen, 12
Erg el-Kebir, 1 3
Erman, A., cited, 46, 48, 73, 81, 122 n. 6,
ij6, 200 n. 4, 219
Eropaei, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Esbet, 46, 47, 51, 62, 71, 224
Escher, J., cited, 186 n. 3
Eshmun, Carthaginian, 198 ; of Balagrae,
185
Esnah, 30
El-Esnam, divination at, 178
Etearchus, dynast of Siwah, 104 ; probable
date of, 230 «. 4
Ethnic disturbances in N. Africa, 227
Ethnics, Libyan, in classical period, 51 sqq. ;
in Egyptian times, 46 sqq., 80
Etruscan language compared with Berber, 73
Etruscan tombs, ostrich eggs in, 101
Eudoxus Cnidius, 53 n. 3, 98 n. 1
Euesperides. See Euesperis
Euesperis, besieged by Libyans, 232 ; fertility
of district of, 98 ; modern Benghazi, 52
Euhesperis. See Euesperis
Euphrates valley, Aristotle on snakes of,
180 ». 6
Euphronius, Antaeus crater of, 260 ; fond
of peculiar types, 261 «. z
Euripides, quoted, 155 «. 1
Eusebius, cited, 106 n. 5, 188 n. 3, 234, 235
Eustathius, cited, 53 n. 7, 56 n. 3, 116, 116
n. 11, 130 n. 1, 178 n. 5, 183, 190, 202
n. 9, 257 ; quoted, 181 n. 5, 195 n. z
Eutropius, cited, 235, 236
Evagrius, cited, 42 n. 9, 66 n. 5, 238
Evans, A. J., cited, 28, 28 n. 5, 86, 101
Evenor, Greek physician, 113 «. 4
Excerpt a Barbari, cited, 64, 68
Eye, belief in evil, at Siwah, 180 ; Libyan,
differentiated from Egyptian on monu-
ments, 43
Factitive sense in Berber, 74
Factories, Carthaginian, 102. See Emporia
Faidherbe, L. L. C, cited, 41, 42, 84, 160
Family, the Libyan, 108 sqq.
Farafrah, oasis of, 11; cut off from Egypt,
216; Egyptian name of, 48 n. 4 ;
population of, 32, 33
Faraxen, raids of, 236
Fatidicus, Deus. See Deus Fatidicus
Fatimite invasion of Egypt, 72
Faustus, deacon, kills brigand, 237
Fayum, flint arrow-heads, Libyan, in, 145 ;
Libyans in, 48, 211; Perire not in,
217 a. 1 ; population of, 32 ; Tehenu
in early, 51
Feminine, formation of, in Berber, 74
Festival of Ausean Athena, 203 sqq. ; of the
Deus Coelestis, 202 sq. ; " Slaying of
the Meshwesh," 225
Festus, quoted, 168 n. 6, 255 n. 2
Fever, apricot, 25 ; "Hargah," 25 ; Libyan
cure for, 113 n. 4
Fezarah, 70
Fezzan, ancient and modern, 58 sq. ; leather
tents of, 168. See Phazania
FHG, cited, 52 nn. 4, 9, 20, 53 n. 1, 54 nn. 2,
3, 61 n. 3, 62 nn. 5, 6, 64 nn. 7, n, 68
n. 5, no n. 7, in nn. 1, 4, 112 nn. 1,
8, 9, 114 n. 2, 116 n. 2, 139 n. 3, 142
n. 7, 151 n. 7, 155 n. 1, 168 n. 9, 176
n. 7, 179 nn. 3, 8, 11, 182 n. 2, 187
n. 1, 203 n. 2, 206 n. 1, 207 n. 2, 232
n. 2, 237 n. 1, 257 n. 5
Fighting -men, estimated number in E.
Libya, 328 sq.
Figureheads of Carthaginian ships, 199
Filiasi, G., cited, 103
Finsch, O., and Hartlaub, G., cited, 29 n. 3
Firestones, 153 ; Libyan, 152
Firmus, revolt of, 237 ; Upper Egypt under,
236
Firth, C. M., 250
Fish, 29 ; taboo against, 176, 177 ; in
Aethiopia, 141
Fish-hooks in "C Group" graves, 250
Fits, Libyan cure for, 113
Flaccus, the Praetor, defeats the Nasamones,
234
Flaccus, Septimius, expedition to Aethiopia,
105, 234
Flamand, G. B. M., cited, xvi, 28 n. 3
Florus, L. Annaeus, cited, 58, 105, 234
Food of the E. Libyans, 99 sq.
Footstool, in Ghadames relief, 153, 159
Footwear, Libyan, 127
Foreign types in N. Africa, 41
Fort, on Gulf of Bombah, 166 sqq. ; Forts,
African, repaired by Justinian, 238 ;
Libyan, 105, 151, 160
Fortress of the West, 218
" Forty Road." See Darb el-Arba'in
Foucauld, C. de, cited, 42
Fountain of Apollo at Cyrene, 173 ;
Fountain of the Sun, 173, 173 n. 2
Fournel, H., cited, 63 n. 4, 117, 232 a. 7,
233, 236, 236 n. 2, 237, 240 n. 5, 241
n. 1
Franks, defeated by Narses at Casilinum,
218 n. 1
Freytag, G. W., cited, 254 n. 2
Frick, C, cited, 65 nn. 2, 3, 4, 5, 66
Fruin, R., cited, 1 12
Fulah peoples, hair-dressing, 136 ; westerly
drift of, 17 n. 1
Fulbe. See Fulah
Funerals in Cairo, 195 n. 1
Furlong, C. W., cited, 29
Gabelentz, G. von der, cited, 73
Gaetuli, 150 k. 5 ; defeated by Crassus,
234 ; in late Roman times, 68 ;
greatest Libyan people, 56 n. 3 ; per-
manent centres, 92 n. 3 ; placed by
Pliny, 59 ; by Strabo, 56 ; Sallust on
the, 255 ; wains of, 149. See Baniurae
and Darae.
Gaetuli, Nigize, 63
Gaiseric, leads Vandals into Africa, 237
Galena in " C Group " graves, 250
Galia, 234
Gallas, 45 ; plumes as tokens among, 130
n. 1
Gallic cavalry, victory of Caesar's, 152
Galu, oasis of, 10
Gambur, 136
" Gaming-reed " of ivory, 118 n. 9
Gamphasantes, placed by Herodotus, 53 ;
poverty in arms, 148 ; vaguely located,
92
Garabub, oasis of, 10
Garah, 33 ; defined, xxi ; dialect of, 76 ;
population of, 32
Garama, 92, 233 ; identified with Germah,
58 ; Julius Maternus at, 234
Garamas, 257, 257 n. 8
Garamantes, aid revolt of Oea and Leptis
Magna, 234; annual movements of,
92 n. 7 ; as agriculturists, 98 ; as
slavers, 103 ; attacked by Balbus, 233 ;
burials of, 181 ; defeated by Quirinius,
234 ; descended from Garamas, 257 ;
dress, 118 ; had cars, 149; in late
Roman times, 78 ; join Julius Maternus
against the Aethiopians, 234 ; light-
clad, 118 n. 2 ; lived by hunting, 93
n. 1 ; marriage customs of, no; placed
by Herodotus, 53 ; by Pliny, 58 ; by
Strabo, 56 ; Pliny's story of deposed
king of, 114 n. 3 ; range of, 49 n. 8 ;
road to the country of, 234 ; Roman
expedition against, 105 ; scarcity of
pottery among, 153 ; southerly ex-
tension of, 49 n. 8 ; use of tents by,
168 n. 5 ; wrongly identified with
Gamphasantes by Herodotus, 53
Garamantic cities, 58
" Garamantic type," 43
Gargilius quells F«raxen, 236
Garlic, ceremonially eaten at Siwah, 177 ;
obnoxious to Moslem orthodoxy, 178
Garlic-eating at Siwah, possible origin of,
203
Gatrun, 12, 15, 30
Gauckler, F., cited, xvi, 169, 201 n. 1
Gaudo, distance to Ras et-Tin, 18 n. 1
Gaulis. See Gaudo
Gautier, E. F., cited, xiv, xv, xvi, xvii, 38
n. 2, 112, 146 n. 1, 157 n. 2, 160, 196,
197, 247 n. 1 ; quoted, 196 n. 1
Gear, household, of Libyans, 152 sq.
Gebel, defined, xxi
Gebel Abu Dirwah, petroglyph at, 250
Gebel el-Ahdar, caves of the, 168 ; trees
of, 27
Gebel el-'Akabah, 4, 5, 6, 62 ; pines in,
1 5 1 ; probable seat of Rebu, 5 1 ; traces
of copper found in, 143 ; trees of, 27
Gebel Dahar, 2
Gebel Gharyan, 2, 71, 91 ; troglodytic
villages in, 168
Gebel Mekter, graves at, 247
Gebel Nafusa, 2, 3 ; dialect of, 76
Gebel Sharkiah, 3
Gebel es-Sodah, 3
Gebeleyn reliefs, 131 «. 3, 137 n. 3, 212
Gedarl, 27
Gellius, A., cited, 1 74 n. 5 ; quoted, 1 8 1 n. 1
Gems, Libyan trade in, 102 ; use of, 133
Georgius Cyprius, cited, 1 1 n. 8
Gepheans, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Gerbah Is., 2, 3, 54
Gerbah, arrow-head from, 146 ; graves at
" Gerid type," 43 n. 1
Germah, 58, 59
Gesenius, W., cited, 185 n. 11, 254, 258
Getullu, 93
Geze, L., cited, 73
Ghadames, 30 ; dialect of, 76 ; divination
as practised near, 178 ; identified with
Cydamus, 58 ; reliefs of, 128, 134, 153,
159 ; town, 13. See Cydamus
GENERAL INDEX
289
Ghardayah, 15, 30
Ghardek, 26
Ghat, 30 ; dialect of, 76 ; road from, 15
Ghemines, fortress at, 151 «. 9; ruins at,
161 sqq.
Gher of the Kalmucks, 168
Gheytah, grave inscriptions allied to Lih-
yanic, 253^
Ghirzah, inscriptions of, 184. n. 2 ; sculp-
tures of, 157 sq.
Ghisleri, A., cited, xvi, 158, 158 n. 1
Gibbon, E., error of, 239 n. 7
Gichthis, 54
Giligamae, as placed by Herodotus, 51 ;
friendly to Greek colonists, 230 ; Pla-
taea, in their territory, 229
Gindanes, custom of, no; marriage cus-
toms of, in ; placed by Herodotus, 52
Ginn dwelling in 'ayns, 172
Giraud-Teulon, A., cited, in n. 4.
Girdles, Libyan, 126
Girgashites, 256
Gizah, near apex of Delta, 8
GJ, cited, 13 ». 1, 24 », 2
Glyph, on rock in Tibesti, 209
Glyphs, " Libyco-Berber," 157
Gnu, tail of, as badge of royalty, 133 n. a
Goats in E. Libya, 28, 95 sq.
Goats offered to " Aesculapius " at Balagrae,
185 n. 5
Gods, Sea-, Libyan, 185 ; Sun-, 187 sq.
Gold, found in Isle of Cyraunis, 14.3 «. 8
Golenischeff, cited, 217 ». i
Goliath (Galut), 257
Goniatae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Gordianus Pius, 235
Gorringe, H., cited, 21
Government, Libyan and Imushagh, 115
Gozzo, geographical relation to Libya, 18.
See Malta
Granaries, Libyan, 171
Grapes, in E. Libya, 26, 98
Gratianus, condemns Count Theodosius,
237
Graves, circular, 246 ; divination at, 178
sq. ; how marked, 183 ; swearing at,
183 sq.
"Great Bend, the," 225
Greece, geographical relation to Libya, 18 ;
secondary sanctuaries of Siwan Amon
in, 191
Greek burials, 181 ; intercourse with Lib-
yans, 261 ; origin of Libyan writing
not proved, 85
Greenhow, R., cited, 14.
Gregory, J. W., cited, 158 n. 2
Grennah, 5
Grimm, J. and W., cited, 1 1 1 n. 5
Gryphon, Usertesen I. as a, 212
Gsell, S., cited, xvi, 169, 197 n. 1
Guaga, 136
Guanches, 44, 45
Gurin, 136
Gurza, worshipped in Tripolitana, 188
Gurzensis, civitas, 188
Gurzil, cult of, 187 sq., 203 ; and the baleful
south wind, 188 n.%
El-Guttah, 7
Gylippus delivers Euesperis, 232
Gyri, Mt., 234
Gyzantes, bee-keepers, 98 ; eat apes, 100 ;
painted, 140 ; placed by Herodotus,
53; the Zygantes of Scylax, 54
Ha-ab-ra. See Apries
Habitual sense in Berber, 74
Habl, lif, 153
Hadrian visits Mauretania, 235
Hadrumetum, Libyans take, 239
Haimann, G., cited, xv, xvi, 47, 158 n. 3,
161, 161 n. 5
Hair-dressing, Libyan, 133 sqq.
Halevy, J., cited, 42, 80, 84, 85, 86, 87
n. 1
Haifa, 27
Haliardi, 64
Hall, H. R., cited, 19 ». 1, 216 n. 7
Ham, 258
Hamadah, defined, xxi
Hamadah el-Homrah, oasis of, 3, 12
Hamadah Murzuk, 12
Hamadah et-Tinghert, 15
Haman, Ba'al, 198
Hamed Gurush, Libyan letters at, 89
Hamilton, J., cited, 34 n. ,, 89, 98 «. 4,
175 ; quoted, 165
Hamites, Atlantic, 44, 45 ; common ethnic
for western, 42 sqq. ; general distribu-
tion of, 44 sq. ; Mediterranean, 44, 45 ;
original type, 39 ; physique of purer,
39 ; Saharan, 44, 45
Hamitic defined, xxi ; ethnic name, 42 ;
languages, 73 ; race, questionable origin
of, 39 ; type, characteristics of pure, 43
El-Hammah, 3
Hammam Is., 51 n. n
"Hammon" confused with Gurzil, 187
Hamsin, 19
Hanna, son of Bad-Melkart, inscription of,
198 n. 5
Hanoteau, A., cited, 74, 8 1, 1 1 5 n. 5, 1 54 n. 5
Haratin Berbers, 44
Harcoris, makes treaty with Libyans, 232
Hargah, 1 1 sq., 30 ; Egyptian name of, 48
n. 5 ; evidence of decreased population,
32 ; fever, 25 ; mud-brick tombs, 25 ;
Persian army at, 174, 231 ; place of
exile for Egyptian criminals, 48 n. 5,
229 ; population, 32, 33 ; Temehu in,
5 1
Harlms of Libyan chiefs, 109 sq.
Harkhuf of Elephantine, 211, 251 ; joins
the chief of Yam, 49
Harpeson, genealogy of, 109 ; Serapeum
stela of, 227 n. 3
Harra, 26
Harris papyrus, 48, 95, 109 n] 7, 139 «. 6,
220
Harrison,. J. E., cited, 176 n. 2
Hartmann, J. M., cited, 51 n. 5, 58 a. 13,
63 ». 10 ; quoted, 263
Harug es-Sod, 3
Hasbitae, erroneously located by Pliny, 51.
See Asbystae.
Hassah, 47, 47 n. 14, 70, 71
Hatshepsut, Queen, divinely assured of vic-
tory, 213 ; in male dress, 114 ; tribute
taken by, 48 n. 5, 92
Hatsho, battle of, 227 ; siege and relief of,
224
Haunebu, 48 n. 2
Hausa choice of chiefs, 195 n. 1
Hawah Segal, fort at, 161
Hawes, C. H. and H., cited, 28 n. 5
Head, B. V., cited, 106
Head-gear, Libyan, 127 sq.
Hecataeus, cited, 42, 52, 53 n. 1, 2
Heiss, A., cited, 86
Heliopolis, city of Atum, 216
Helius compared with Gurzil, 188 ; Libyan,
187 ; relation to " Saturnus," 201
Hellanicus, cited, 142, 144, 147, 153, 168 ;
quoted, 143 n. 6
Helms, not in general use among the Lib-
yans, 143, 148 sq.
Hematite, found in Libyan desert, 143 «. 2
Henayah, fortress of, 165
Hepes, 147
Heracleopolis, Libyan family in, 228
Heracles, legend of Amon and, 189 ; on
Antaeus crater of Euphronius, 260
Heracletum, 222 n. 5
Heraclius, Persians enter Egypt in time of,
239
Hercules, legend of his death in Spain, 255
Hermippus [Comicus] cited, 96 ; quoted, 101
Herodian, cited, 235
Herodotus, cited, xix nn. 5, 7, xx, 25, 29,
42, 48, 48 n. 3, 51, 52, 54, 58, 64, 79
n. 10, 80, 91, 92, 96, 98, 99, 101 k. 1,
102, 104, 104 n. 1, 106, 109, no, 111,
114, 1 14 n. z, 1 1 6 n. 2, 118, 122, 128
" 3> 139. '4°, 142 "■ 8, 144. H 6 . J48,
149, 166, 170, 171, 173, 174, 177, 179,
185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 195,
198 n.\, 201, 204 n. 3, 206, 207 n. 1,
226, 229, 229 «. 8, 230, 230 nn. 2, 5, 231,
231 nn. 3, 8 ; quoted, 25, 29, 52, 66,
80 n. 1, 93, 93 n. 1, 100, 103, 113, 128,
'33, 134. '43, '45. '45 "■ 8. 154. 168,
174, 178, 179. lgl *»■ 3, 5, '^3. 185,
186, 187, 190, [90 K. IO, 20I, 203, 2O4,
206 n. 3
Her-pu-krat, 137
Hes, 46, 47, 71, 224; located with reserve,
5 1 ; name perhaps survives in Hassah,
.71
Hesiod, cited, xix n. 6
Hess, J. J., cited, 254 n. 1
Hestyw, 48
Hesychius, cited, 41, 116 n. 2, 191, 206;
quoted, 148 n. 5, 155 n. 1
Heta favour plans of Meryey, 2 1 6
Hetihenker, governor in Delta, 229
Heuzey, L., cited, 93 n. 9
Heybar, taboo of garlic at, 178
Hides, some African burials wrapped in,
182 n. 5 ; tanned by Libyans, 152
Hieroduli of Deus Fatidicus, 195
Hieronymus, St., quoted, 169, 235
Hildebrand, G, cited, 4, 16 n. 1, 19, 20, 21
Hillal-Ben-Amar, incursion of the, 72
Hills, sacred, 173
Himalayas, absence of blonds in, 41
Hindu Kush, absence of blonds in, 41
Hippocrates, cited, 93 n. 8, 121 n. 4
History of E. Libyans, 210 sqq.
History of Siwah, Anonymous, quoted, 200
Hittites. See Heta
Hizam, 245, 252
Hogarth, D. G, cited, 236 n. 5
Hohler, T. B., cited, 7 n. 2
Homer, cited, xix n. 6, 52 n. 15, 149 n. 8,
n. 2, 190 n. 8 ; quoted, 95
Honorius, Julius, 64
Honsu, 137
Hophra. See Apries
Horace, cited, 201 n. 3
Hornemann, F., cited, 96 n. 8 ; quoted, 101
Horse, early introduction into Crete, 28
n. 5 ; in E. Libya, 28, 96
Horses, Bedawin, endurance of, 16 ; cap-
tured from Meryey, 218 ; Cyrenaic,
97 ; Libyan, 150, 170 ; Libyan, trap-
pings of, 97
Horse-burials in Cyrenaica, 182 n. 3
Houses, Libyan, of mud and salt, 92
Hu, 252 ; Pan-graves at, 245
Huarah, 70 ; worshipped Gurza, 188
Hunting among E. Libyans, 93 sqq.
Huntington, E., cited, 24
Huts, modern Berber, 170
Huwarah. See Huarah
Hydrias, 153
2 P
290
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Hyginus, G. J., cited, 189, 189 n. 8, 190 nn.
»■ 7
Hygrometry of Libyan desert, 22
Hymns, Libyan, 154
Iamblichus, cited, 190 «. 10, 198 n. 4
Iberian Peninsula, arrivals in Africa from,
226 ; megaliths in, 160
Iberians, use of caetra by, 14.8 n. 5
Ibn 'Abd el-Hakam, cited, 69, 240, 240 n. ^
Ibn Abi '1-Dinar, cited, 69, 71, 240, 240 n. 5
Ibn el-Atir, quoted, 69, 240, 240 «. 2
Ibn Haldun, cited, 38 n. 2, 42, 58 «. 14,
67, 69, 70 k. 1, 71, 117, 187, 208 n.
5, 257; on Berber character, 37 sq. ;
quoted, 38
Ibn Kotaybah, cited, 257 n. 3
Ichthyophagi, 55
Iddaylah, oasis of, 1 1
Idebni, name of spirit, 178
Idinen massif, 173
El-Idrisi, cited, 4, 57, 69, 70, 71 ; quoted,
208 n. 1
Ierna, priest of Gurzil, 187
Iernas, 117
Ieru, Libyan divinity, 188
Ifren, 71
Ifuraces, in late Roman times, 67
Ifuren, 71
Igherri, oasis of, 10
Ihaggaren, 114, 174
Ilaguaten, 67
Ilasguae. See Leuathae and Ilaguaten
Illyrians, reach Adriatic, 226
" Illyro-Pelasgic," 74
Imenghassaten, the, 1 1 5
Imghad, 114
Imgharen. See Amghar
Imilco, overcomes drunken Libyans, 34 n. 1
Immukalen. See Amenukal
'Imn-t, 48
Imports in E. Libya, 103
Imukehek, 46, 47 ; captured, 213 ; position
of unknown, 51
Imushagh, abstain from certain foods, 100 ;
arm-knives of, 147 ; bracelets of, 132 ;
character, 38 n. 2 ; code of honour of,
35 ; domestic possessions of, 152 ; dress
of, 122 n. 3 ; facile makers of verse,
154; government of, 114 sq. ; gravity
of, 35 ; hats of, 127 ; laws of inherit-
ance among, 112 ; matriarchal taboos
of, 112; metrics of, 1 54 ; noble and
servile classes of, 114; taboos of, 176 ;
women of, 37 ; women of, with side-
locks, 135. See African, Berber,
Libyan, Nomad
Imushagh, Azgar, superstition concerning
Idinen massif, 174
Inarus, revolt of, 152, 228, 231
Incineration, a doubtful case of Libyan, 182
n. 1
Indians, American, war-dances of, 156
Inennakaten, the, 1 1 5
■In Salah, 15
Inscriptions, date of Libyan, 85 ; distribution
of Libyan, 85 ; how read, 89 ; Libyan,
84 ; Libyco-Latin bilingual, 184 ; non-
Mithraic, in honour of the sun, 187 ;
of Ghirzah, 1 84 n. 2
Intef I., dogs of, with Libyan names, 212 ;
stela of, 80 sq.
Invasions, cause of the Libyan, 225 sqq.
lobacchi, placed by Ptolemy, 62
IOMSAS, dedication, 201 n. 17
Iontii, 64
Iram, 200 n. 3
Irasa, district of, 79, 230
Iron, aversion of the ginn to, 175 ; in
Marmarica, 143
Irtet, negroes, 46
Isammone, 190 n. 10
Isidorus Hispalensis, St., quoted, 101 n. 3,
148 n. 9, 257 n- 8
Isogonus, 181 11. 1
Israel stela, 109 n. 4, 218, 219
Issedonians, burial customs of, 182 n. 2
Italy, arrival of Tyrrhenians in, 226 ;
megaliths of southern, 160 ; structures
attributed to Cronus in, 166
Itendidi, officer of Usertesen I., 212 ; visit of,
to " land of the oasis-dwellers," 48 n. 4
Iter, length of, 224 n. <j t
Itinerarium Antonini, cited, 63, 79
Ivory, in Tehenu tribute, 213 ; Libyan trade
in, 101
Jablonski, P. E., cited, 176 n. 7, 188 n. 9
JAGNY, cited, 2 1 n. 4
Jahrbuch d. Arch. Instit., cited, 169
Jar-sealings, Nubian, 249
Jason, at Lake Tritonis, 186 sq.
Javelin, a characteristic Libyan weapon,
146 ; general use of, in E. Libya, 144 ;
heads of, among E. Libyans, 143
Jebusites, 256
Jephson, A. J. M., cited, 182 n. 5
Jequier, G., cited, 205 n. 2, 206
Jerome, St. See Hieronymus
Jesus the son of Noah, 256
Jews, in Benghazi, 208 n. 1 ; rebellion of,
in Cyrenaica, 208
Johannes Troglita, sent by Justinian to
Libya, 239 ; victory of, celebrated by
Corippus, 239 n. 3
Johannis Biclarensis (Abbas), cited, 208 n. 5
John of Nikiu, 239
John the Phrygian, 237 n. 6
Joko, burial at, 182 n. 5
Jornandes, cited, 234
Josephus, cited, 258 n. 8
Joshua. See Jesus
Juba, cult of, 183
Jubainville, DA. de, cited, 86
Judaic uprising in Cyrenaica, 235
Judaism in E. Libya, 208 sq.
Jugurtha, betrayed by Bocchus, 37
J unions Philosophi Orbis Descriptio, cited, 37
n. 3
Jupiter, Saturnas confused with, 201
Justin, cited, 42 n. 12, 177 n. 5, 231 n. 1
Justin I., Egypt raided in time of, 238
Justinian, forces Christianity on pagans, 238
Juvenal, cited, 178 n. 2, 197 n. 6
Kabes, dogs eaten at, 177
Kabyle rain-making, 179 ; tattooing, 138
Kadesh poem, 214 sq.
Kafilah, defined, xxi
Kafr ez-Zayat, Perire not at, 2 1 7 n. 1
El-Kahinah, 1 17
Kalmuks, gher of, 168
Kanuri, 15
Karbaniti, 222 n. 5
Karnak, figures of Amon found at, 193 sq. ;
reliefs at, 109, 135, 213 n. 12, 217 n. 14
Karutz, R., cited, 145 n. 6
Kasr, defined, xxi
Kasr of Tementit in Tuat, 173
Kau negroes, 46
Kayruan, Aghlebite dynasty of, 34 n. 1
Keane, A. H., cited, 32, 88 n. 1, 93 n. 7,
159 n. 3
Kebrit, Gulf of, 3, 231 n. 8
Keeling, B. F. E., 23
Kehek, 46, 47 ; location of, 51 ; war-songs,
alleged discovery of, 76 n. 2
Kel Azgar. See Azgar Confederation
Kel Fadeh men with side-locks, 136
El-Kenayssiah, sculpture from, 188
Kenmet, 48 ». 5
Kepper, captured, 224 ; falls on Rebu and
Tehenu, 223 ; family of, 109
Kerbah, defined, xxi ; kerabah, 149, 152, 153
Kerben, town of, 222, 222 n. 5
Kerome, 228
Keykesh, 46, 47, 224; position of, unknown,
5 1
Kh-. See H-
Khosrau. See Chosroes
Kibly, 19, 21. See South-wind
Kilt, worn by Libyans, 118 ; by Egyptians,
118
King, J. W. H., cited, 85
Kings, cult of dead Libyan, 183
Kordofan, modern wains in, 1 50 ; oath-
taking in, 184
Koshtamnah, cuprous ore at, 250 n. 2
Krio, Cape, distance from Dernah, 1 8
KPr'rfty not penistasche, 122
Kubbah, circular tomb of, 247
Kubban, " C Group " pottery in, 249 n. 3 ;
cuprous ore at, 250 n. 2
Kufra, 58
Kumm, H. K. W., quoted, 182 n. 5
El-Ku ran > cited, 200 n. 3 ; eating of animals
forbidden by the, 177
Kurkur, oasis of, 12 ; population of, 32
Kushito-Hamites, 45
Labials, permutations of, in Berber, 76
Lactantius, cited, 173, 183 ; quoted, 183
n. 3
Laghwat, 15
Laguanta. See Ilaguaten
Lakbi, 34 n. 1, 99
Lampridius, Aelius, cited, 235
"Land, the Red," 51
Lander, R., cited, 182
Landolfus Sagax, cited, 255 ». 4 ; quoted,
239 n. 6
Lane, E. W., cited, 175
Lane-Poole, S., cited, 69, 240 h. 10
Langhans, P., cited, 1 n. 2
Langobardic element in Italy, 47
Laquiere, 173
Laribus, besieged by Leuathae, 239
Lasamici or Lasanici, near Psylli, 62 ; caves
of, 62
l.aserpitium, 28
Late New Empire, defined, xxii n. 1
Laudations, evil, 181
LD, cited, xiii, xiv, xv, xvi, 49 n. 4, 116 n. 1,
1 30 ». 5, 134 n. 3, 251 n. 1
Leander, brother of Nicocrates, 233
Lebanaeum, visited by Libyans, 101 n. 5
Lebdah, Huarah in vicinity of, 71
Lefebure, conjuncture of, 139
Left, 26
Legitimacy, Psyllic test of, 180
Leg-rings, Libyan, 133
Lehabim, 258
Leo Africanus, cited, 42, 69, 69 n. 6, 176
176 n. 6 ; quoted, 42 n. 4
Leptis, 63
Leptis Magna 71 ; revolt of, 234 ; vicinity
of ravaged, 237
Leuathae, chiefs of, murdered by Sergius
238 ; in late Roman times, 67 ; in
revolt, 238 ; march on Carthage, 239
Leucaethiopes, 44 n. 2 ; placed by Pliny,
60
Leucon, battle of, 230
El-Leyts Ibn Sa'ad, quoted, 240
Liber Generationis, cited, 65, 68
GENERAL INDEX
29
Libya, called Xdpa jro\wij/u/ios, xix n. 2 ;
confused with Aethiopia, 190 ». 8, 230
n. 5 ; in the Odyssey, 95 ; extent of,
xix, 5 1 ; origin of name of, xix ; place-
names in, 76 sq. ; terms used in describ-
ing, xxi sq. See Africa ; Libya, Eastern ;
Mauritania, etc.
Libya, Atlantic, Carthaginian trade with,
103
Libya, Eastern, atmospheric phenomena in,
24. ; boundaries of, xix sq., 1 sqq. ;
ceremonial progress of Amon in, 156 ;
Christianity in, 208 sq. ; climate of,
19 sqq. ; distribution of population in,
30 ; ethnogeography of, 39 sqq. ; Fauna
and Flora of, 2 6 sqq. ; game in, 9 3 sqq. ;
habitations in, 168 ; internal geography
of, t 3 sqq. ; Judaism in, 208 ; metals
in, 142 sq. ; Mohammadan invasion
of, 1 8, 240 ; natural goal of eastward
ethnic shifts, 17 ; physiography of, 1
sqq. ; population of, 3 1 sq. ; rainfall in,
20 sqq. ; relative geographic position,
17 ; salubrity of, 25 ; scarcity of good
cloth in, 1 20 ; scarcity of native in-
scriptions in, 84 ; temperature of, 20,
22, 24 ; town of, 30, 233 sq. ; western
confines of, 12 sq. ; winds, 19, 21, 23.
See Africa, Libya, etc.
Libyaegypti, 59, 61, 251. See Libyoaegyptiae
Libyaethiopes, 69
Libyans, Eastern, above Meroe, 56 ;
accoutrements of, 152 sq. ; agriculture
of, 98 sq. ; allied with Northerners, 220
sq. ; arms and warfare of, 144 sqq. ;
associated with Asiatics, 151, 259 ; with
Carthage, 229 ; beards of, 137 ; beaten
by Sergius, 238 ; besiege Euesperis, 55 ;
blond, 40 ; burials of, 246 ; captives
tattooed, 206 ; chiefs of, accompanied
by their women in war, 109 ; chiefs,
titles of, 115 sq. ; chieftainship of,
114 ; converts to Judaism, 208 «. 2 ;
christianized, 238 ; claims of, to oriental
origin, 256 ; compared with "C Group"
people, 251 ; conception of sky among,
201 ; confused with Aethiopians, 44
n. 1 ; cultural stages of, 92 sq. ; domestic
animals of, 95 sqq. ; dress of, 118 sqq. ;
dress of women of, 128 ; drift into
Delta, 225 ; duties of chiefs among,
116; eponyms of, 257 ; ethnogeography
of, 48 sqq. ; ethnology of, 39 sqq. ;
family among, 108 ; food of, 99 ;
fusion with Egyptians, 246 ; general
movements of, 71 ; head, Capart's
notice of a, 251 ». 2 ; government of,
114 sqq. ; groups and tribes of dis-
tinguished, 45 sqq. ; had tents of leather,
168 ; harass the Persians, 231 ; history
of, 210 sqq. ; horsemanship of, 150 sq. ;
hunting among, 93 sqq. ; in army
of Xerxes, 122, 131 ; in Egyptian art,
40 ; intercourse with Greeks, 261 ; in-
vasions of Egypt by, 33, 215 ; language
of, 76 sqq. ; limited nomadism of, xx,
91 ; magic among, 178 sqq. ; make
treaty with Harcoris, 232 ; marriage
customs of, in; matriarchate among,
111 sq. ; military history characterized,
152 ; Moslem invasion of, 31 ; physique
of, 25 ; music of, 153 sq. ; negroids,
43, 49 n. 8, 50 ; of the littoral
under Romans, 233 ; of littoral with
foreign weapons, 107 ; Old Testament
notices of, 258 ; on defensive in early
wars with Egypt, 212 ; opposed by
Armatius, 237 ; pay tribute to
Cambyses III., 230 ; personal orna-
mentation of, 129 sqq. ; polygamous,
108 sqq. ; portion of the Western
Hamites, 45 ; practised inhumation,
182 ; Procopius's story of their origin,
256 ; pushed back from seaboard, 71 ;
put down by Magas, 232 ; rebelled
against King Nefer-ka-ra, 210; religion
of, 172 sqq. ; religion partially iconic,
207 ; repartition in late Roman times,
65 sqq. ; revolt against Cyrene, 230 ;
ritual festival of, 179 ; sacrificed to sun
and moon, 187 ; Saliust on the, 255 ;
sociology and government of, like those
of modern Berbers, 1 1 7 5 script, re-
lated to Phoenician, 85 sq. ; songs of,
154; spoiled by Merneptah, 95; by
Rameses III., 22, 95 ; by Sesostris, 95 ;
sowing among, 99 n. 9 ; strongholds
of, 105, 160 sqq. ; taboos among, 176 ;
tactics in warfare of, 150 ; tattooing
among, 137 sqq. ; trade, with Sudan,
1 01 ; by barter, 106 ; dangers of, 104
sq. ; traditional origins of, 255 sqq. ;
uncircumcised, 140 ; use of long swords
by, 144 ; use of metals by, 142 sqq. ;
warfare in classical period, 151 ;
weapons of, 143 sqq. ; women, occupa-
tions and status of, 112 sqq. ; wore
skins, 93 ; writing of, 84
Libyarchae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Libyarchontes, 62 n. 2
" Libyco-Berber " alphabet, 85
" Liby co -Roman " reliefs from Umm el-
Harab, 120
Libyoaegyptiae, in late Roman times, 68.
See Libyaegypti
Libyphoenices, placed by Diodorus, 56 ; by
Pliny, 57 ; by Ptolemy, 64 ; by Strabo,
55, 241
Lieblein, J., cited, 199
Lifayah, a Siwan faction, 175
Ligatures in Tifinagh, 88
Lihyanic, Gheytah inscriptions allied to,
253
Limes Bubensis, 59
Liquids, permutations of, in Berber, 76
Littmann, E., cited, 85, 254 n. 1
Littoral, the, population of, 33
Livi, R., cited, 41
Livy, cited, 57 n. 8, 152, 168, 169, 182 n. 2,
232 ; quoted, 108 n. 2
Lizards, taboo against, 176, 177
Lock of Youth, 137
Locusts as food, 100 sq. ; devastations in
Cyrenaica, 29 ; eaten by Aethiopians,
100 n. 16
Lotophagi, as agriculturalists, 99 ; extent of,
55 ; nomadism of, 91 ; placed by
Herodotus, 52 ; by Pliny, 57 ; by
Ptolemy, 63 ; by Scylax, 54 ; Strabo
on, 55
Lotus, in E. Libya, 26 ; of Homer, 26 ;
" wine," 99
Lua, the elder, 69 ; the younger, 60
Luatah Berbers, 69, 70 n. 1 ; pay tribute to
'Amr Ibn el-Asi, 240
Lubim, 258 ; allies of Egypt, 258 ; of Tyre,
258
Lucan, cited, 39 n. l, 40, 42, 97, 180, 180
nn. 1, 5, 190 n. 1, 204 «. 2, 233 n. 2 ;
quoted, 97, 97 n. 9, 98 n. 7, 106, 118,
121, 146, 150 n. 5
Lucian, cited, 9 n. ■, 53 ». 4, 92 «. 7, 93
n. 1, 118 n. 2, 137 «. 2, 153, 153 H.4,
168 n. 5 ; quoted, 153
[Lucian], cited, 188 ». 3
Lucretius, cited, 173
Luka, identification of, 216 «. 7 ; in alliance
with Meryey, 150; join the Libyans
against Egypt, 216
Lunar observance, 176 n. 4
Lutatius, cited, 189 n. 8, 200 ; quoted, 257,
n. 8
Lycians, 216 n. 7
Lycus, brother of Arcesilaus II., 230
Lycus Rhegius, 176 n. 7
Lydus, Joannes Laurentius, cited, 166 n. 3
Lyon, G. F., cited, 98 n. 8, 128 n. 3, 154
n. 2, 177 ; quoted, 122 n. 3
Lysander receives warning in a dream, 191,
194
Macae, 67 ; bearded, 137 ; claimed descent
from Amphithemis, 257 ; currency of,
106 ; drive out Doric Greeks from
Cinyps, 231 ; goat-skins worn by, 121 ;
hair of, 133 ; nomadism of, 91 ; placed
by Diodorus, 56 ; by Herodotus, 52 ;
Pliny, 57 ; by Ptolemy, 63 ; by Scylax,
54 ; shields of, 148 ; use of cateia by,
146 ». 12
Macatutae, 62 ; placed by Ptolemy, 62
Mace, A. C, letter of, quoted, 131 n. 1
Macetae, in late Roman times, 67
Machaera, 147
Machlyes, claimed descent from Amphi-
themis, 257 ; hair of, 134 ; location of,
9 1 ; marriage customs of, 1 1 1 ; placed
by Herodotus, 52. See Machryes.
"Machines," 52 n. 19
Machroas. See Machryes
Machryes, confused with Lotophagi, 57 n.
5, 58 ; by Ptolemy, 64 ; Machryes and
Maghrawah, 71. See Machlyes
Machyni, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Maclver, D. R., and Wilkin, A., cited, xviii,
112 n. 10, 120 n. 3, 246 n. 1, 247 n. 4,
249 ; quoted, 160 n. 1
Maclver, D. R., and Wooley, C. L., cited,
xviii, 249 n. 2
Macler, F. See Dussaud, R.
Macomades, 63, 63 n. 4 ; M. Selorum, 63 n. 4
Macrobii, 55
Macrobius, cited, 134 n. 2 ; 187, 188, 188
n. 3, 190
Magas marches from Cyrene to Egypt, 232
Magempuri, 69
Maghilah, 64 n. 8
Maghrawah, 71
Magic, among Eastern Libyans, 178 sqq. ;
"black," 1 80; in Greek legend, 178 ». 3
Mahaffy, J. P., cited, 62 n. 4, 232 n. 4
El-Makrizi, cited, 69, 70 n. 2
Malaria, 25
El-Maleki, cited, 240
Mallet, D., cited, 140, 205, 205 n. 2, 206
Malta, geographical relation to Libya, 18 ;
grain-stores in, 171 ; megaliths of, 160
Mamakas, 63 n. 10
Mamalukes drive the Zenarah out of Egypt,
69
Mampsari, 64
Mamucensis Limes, 63
Mamucii, in late Roman times, 67
Manes-cultus, among E. Libyans, 181 sqq. ;
and kinship, in ; at Augila, 178
Manetho, cited, 211 ; quoted, 112 n. 3
Mannier stela, 48 n. 5
Manshiah el-Aguzah, dialect of, 76 ; Siwan
Berber spoken at, 48 n. 5
Manufiah, Berbers in province of, 70
Mapalia, 255 ; among E. Libyans. 168 sqq.
Mappalia. See Mapalia
Maradah, dialect of, 76
Maraghi, at west end of Siwah Oasis, 10
292
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Marcellinus, Ammianus, cited, 42 ft. 9, 64,
66, 68, 98 ft. o, 188; quoted, 117, 151
». 6, 237, 237 n. 4
Marcellinus, Count, cited, 239
Marchubi, 58
Marcianus Heracleensis, cited, xix n. 6
Marcus, L., cited, 102 «. 6
Marea, Libyans of, consult Siwan Amon,
190
Mareotae, placed by Pliny, 57 ; by Ptolemy,
6t
Mareotic Libyans support Inarus, 231
Mareotis, Lake, 57
Marinus Tyrius, cited, 105 ; quoted, 234 ft. 9
Marmarica, 7, 54, 198 ; cisterns in, 25 ; iron
in, 143 ; Libyans of, pay tribute to Cam-
byses III., 230 ; mapalia used in, 168
ft. 12; owners' marks from, 89 sq. ;
population, 32, 33 ; Synesius's account
of natives of, 248 ; wine of, 98
Marmaridae, clad in skins, 121; claimed
descent from Amphithemis, 257 ; de-
feated by Probus, 236 ; defeated by
Quirinius, 234 ; general ethnic of, 71 ;
in late Roman times, 66 ; placed by
Diodorus, 56 ; by Pliny, 57 ; by
Ptolemy, 62 ; byScylax, 54 ; by Strabo,
55 ; rise against Magas, 232
" Marmaris," son of "Arabs," 54 «. 2, 257
Marocco, Amazigh of the Rif of, 136;
tattooing in, 138 ; xanthochroids in, 40
Marriage, Libyan, 108 sq. ; customs, wo sqq.
Marsa, defined, xxi
Marsa Matru, arable land at, 7
Marsa Suzah, 5, 6 ; coastal subsidence at,
6 ft. 1 ; grain-store at, 171 ; Minoan
gem at, 10 1 n. 5
Marsa Tobruk, 6
Marsa Zaffran, 3
Marsi, snake-charmers, 179
Martha, J., cited, 101
Martial, quoted, 39 ft. 2
Martin, de S., cited, 28 n. 3
Masai, 42 n. 15, 45
Mas d'Azil, pebbles of, 86
Maspero, G., cited, xvi, 7, 26 n. 6, 80 n. 6,
93 ". 9, 114 n. 5, 194, 195 n. 5, 219,
220, 221 ; quoted, 156 n. 4
Masqueray, E., cited, 42, 78 n. 3
Masrub, 16
Massachitae, 62
Massagetae, marriage customs of, no
Massufa Imushagh, 112
Massyli, 58, 150 n. 5 ; proneness to night
attacks, 151 «. 7
Masteni, 61 ft. 4
Mastiman, Libyan god, 185
Mastitae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Masuchis, 62
Matapan, Cape, distance to Ras el-Hillil, 18
Mater Deum, 206
Maternus, Firmicus, cited (De errore, etc.),
176, 176 ». 1 ; quoted (Mathes.), 37 n.
3, 41 ft. 1
Maternus, Julius, expedition to Aethiopia,
105 ; joins Garamantes, 234
Mathos, mutiny of, 232
Mathuisieulx, H. M. de, cited, 160
Matriarchal taboos, 176
Matriarchate, 14 ; in Aethiopia, 112 ; in
Eastern Libya, 1 1 1 sqq.
Mats of grass, Libyan, 152 ; of skin, 153
Mattresses, Libyan, 152
" Mauretanians," subdued by Aristomachus,
239 ft. 5
Mauri, 255 ; defeated by Romans, in Africa
and Spain, 235; polygamous, 108;
repressed byFurius Celsus, 235 ; tactics
of, 151 ; used mapalia, 168 ; women
of, as seeresses, 178 ; wrongly declared
ignorant of oaths, 183 ft. 6. See
Maurusii
Mauri, Barcaei, 66
Maurusii, hair-dressing of, 133 ; Procopius's
story of origin of, 256. See Mauri
Maxalla, 234
Maximianus, crushes the Quinquegentes,
236
Maximinus, campaign of, 238
Maximus Tyrius, cited, 173 «. 12, 186
Maxyes, hair of, 134; of Herodotus, and
the Meshwesh, 47 ; painted, 140 ;
placed by Herodotus, 53 ; said to be
of Trojan origin, 227
Mazices, harry Blemmyes, 238 ; in late
Roman times, 66 ; name, 7 1 ; overrun
the Pentapolis, 237 sq. ; plunder Egypt,
238
Mazoi negroes, 46
Mazurah, 70
Mazyes, 52 ft. 19
Mazzucchelli, editor, 67 n. 6, 68 ft. 7
Meber, Merneptah musters his forces in,
216
Mecales, in late Roman times, 68 ; of
Corippus, 64 n. 8
Medes, 255
Medinet Habu, tiles from, 113, 118, 127,
131, 132, 137, 138, 220, 224 nn. 11, 12,
222 ft. 9, 223 «. 3
Medisinisas, his retort to the Byzantine
general Solomon, 108
Medrasen, mausoleum of, 247
Megabelah tribe, dogs eaten by the, 177
Megalithic remains, absence of, in Eastern
Libya and the Sahara, 159 sq. ; found
in Spain, Africa Minor, and Italy, 160
Mehetnushet, 228
Mehlis, C, cited, 40 n. 5
" Mehurt, the cow," Neith so called, 206
Mela, cited, xx, 9, 53, 59, 66, 79, 93, 96
ft. 7, 99, 100, 108, 116, 121, 144, 153,
173, 174, 177, 181, 183, 204 ft. 1 ;
quoted, 92, 95 h. 3, 99, 100 ««. 9, n,
114, 116 ft. 12, 119 n. 1, 153, 168 ft. 12,
178 ft. 4, 187 n. 1, 204 ft. 1
Melanogaetuli, 44 n. 2
Melix, C. L., cited, 159 n. 2
Melkart, Carthaginian deity, 198
Meltzer, O., cited, 170 «. 2, 229
Memphis, Amon cultus at, 188 ft. 3 ; be-
sieged by Inarus, 231 ; Libyan aggres-
sions near, 222
Menhirs, scarcity of, in E. Libya, 160
Meninx, dyed clothes of, 120 n. 1 ; Loto-
phagi in, 55
Mentuhotep I. defeats Libyans, 2 1 2
Mercenaries, Wawat, 49 ». 3
Merrier, E., cited, 47 n. 14, 71
Merrier, G., cited, 185, 188
Merg, 5, 6, 30
Meri-Nit, royal name in early Egypt, 205
Merneptah conquers Meryey, 150, 217 ;
enthusiasm at his victory over Meryey,
219 ; invasion in time of, 50, 215 sqq. ;
Libyans spoiled by, 95, 98 ; punitive
expeditions of, 219 ; records of, 145
Meroe, 49, queens of, sculptured with
beards, 114
Meroitic kingdom, matriarchate in, 112
Meroitic reliefs, 1 1 2 «. 2
Meryey, 114, 115; attacks the Temehu
with bowmen, 145 ; defeat of, 130;
family of, 109; flight of, 218,- head
of confederacy against Egypt, 1 50,
216 ; invasion of Egypt under, 216 ;
his metal treasures, 142 ; name appears
twice in Egyptian annals, 221 ; plume
of, 130 ; rout of, 217 ; sandals of, 127 ;
throne of, 153
Mesamones, old name for Nasamones, 52,
257 ft. 7
Meshesher, falls on Rebu and Tehenu, 223
Meshken, conquered by Rameses III., 221
Meshwesh, 46, 224 n. 1 ; attack the Rebu,
223 ,• Me[shwesh] chiefs of, 115 ; cop-
per swords of, 142, 146, 217 ; eastern
movement of, 227; form of penistasche
worn by, 124, 125 ; hair-dressing of,
134; head-gear of, 127 ; in first Libyan
war of Rameses III., 222 ; location of,
51 ; overcome Tehenu, 150 ; plunder
Egypt, 220 n. 4 ; and Maxyes, 47
Messah, supposed megaliths at, 1 60 n. 3
Metals, scarcity of, in E. Libya, 143 ; use of,
in E. Libya, 142 sqq.
Metates, in Fayum, 153
Metathesis common in Berber, 76
Metrics, Imushagh, 154
Meyer, E., cited, 122 ft. 6
Mezatah, 70
Miaedii, 64
" Middle Nubians.'' See " C Group "
Mideni, 64
Mighmadas, 63 n. 4
Migrations, Libyan invasions were really,
227
Milne, J. G., cited, 49, 179 n. 8, 236 n. 8, 238
Mimaces, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Min of Coptos, archaic sign of, 249 ft. 1 ;
as guide, 200 ft. 4 ; form of shrine of,
169 ft. 8
Minoan gem seen at Marsa Suzah, 101 «. 5
Minucius Felix, quoted, 183
Mirage regarded animistically in Libya, 176
Misdah, 30
Misraim, 258
Mit Rahinah, etching on mirror found at,
!93
Mnevis, cult of, in Egypt, 188
Mobilization, Libyan areas of, 33
Moghreb, or el-Moghreb, defined, xxi ;
first Arab incursion into, 240 ; mega-
lith builders in, 1 60 ; traditional in-
vasion from Spain, 256
Moghrebin, reputed magicians, 179
Mohammadan conquest of N. Africa, 93 ;
invasion of Libya exceptional, 1 8
El-Mokaddasi, 177
Mommsen, T., cited, 38
Money, Libyans wrongly said to have used
it in early times, 106
Mongar, defined, xxi
Mongar Lebuk, haematite at, 143 «. 2
Moon, all Libyans sacrificed to, 187 ; Lib-
yan surrender because of increase in
size of, 211
Moon-god, 188
Moore, G. F., cited, 278 n. 1
Moors, Trarza, 42
Morcelli, S. A., cited, 68 «. 7, 185 ft. 8, 209,
235
Mosaic of Udnah, 169
Mosaics at el- Allah, 169
Mosallah, 70
Moschus, J., cited, 66
Moses, succeeded by Jesus the son of Noah,
256
Motuturii, 64
Mount of the Horns of the Earth, 217, 224
ft. 9
Mountains, the Black, 233, 234
Movers, J. C, cited, 177
Mt. Atlas, Pliny's account of, 173
Muchthusii, placed by Ptolemy, 64
El-Mudar mta el-Hamadah, 3
Muhtar, 2, 55
Mailer, C, cited, xiii, 40 n. 5, 61 «. 6, 62
nn. 1, 3, 4, 9, 63, 64, 65 «. 1, 185 n. 7
Mllller, C. L., cited, 80, 97 n. 13, 106, 191
Mailer, W. M., cited, xvi, 40 n. 2, 85 k. 5,
93 n. 10, 101 n. 3, 116 n. 1, 121 k. 1,
122 nn. 5, 8, 130 n. 1, 132, 133 n.^,
137 ". i, 142, i43» 150. 151 "■ 9. '53>
216 n. 7, 222 n. 3, 215 n. 1 ; quoted,
132 n. 1, 133 n. -s
Murzuk, oasis of, 12, 15, 30
Musen, son of Buyuwawa, 228
Music, Imushagh, 154; Libyan, 153 sq.
Mustaches, worn by E. Libyans, 137
Musulami, 58
Musulini, defeated by Romans, 234
Musulini. See Musulami
Musunei, 58, 64
Muturgures, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Myiagrus, 186
Myrtitis, looted by Libyans, 237
Nabateans, dress of kings of, 118
Nabis, 1 1 7
Nachtigal, G., cited, xvi, 13, 170 n. 1, 209
Namar, King, said to have warred against
the Libyans, 210 «. 2
Names, Libyans, personal, in the Egyptian
annals, 80
Namlot, 115, 228 ; queen of, no
Nannagi, 59, 234
Narses, victory over the Franks at, 2 1 8 n. 1
Nasamones, 64 ». 4, 65 ; as pirates, 105 sq. ;
attack the Psylli, 174, 231 ; burials of
the, 181 sq., 194; chastised by Romans,
106 ; claimed descent from Nasamon,
257 ; collect dates at Augila, 98 ; divi-
nation at graves among, 178 ; dress,
118; eaters of locusts, 100 ; forts in
territory of, 151, 166; in late Roman
times, 66 ; marriage customs of, no ;
method of taking oath, 183; misplaced
by Ptolemy, 62 ; placed by Diodorus,
56 ; by Herodotus, 52 ; by Pliny, 57 ;
by Scylax, 54 ; by Strabo, 55 ; revolt
of, 234; stability of, 71 ; their mode
of pledging faith, 179; typical, 91 ;
used map ali a, 168 ; wore wings on
head, 130 n. 1
Nasamonian youths, Herodotus's story of the
five, 104
" Nascimenia," 65
En-Nasir, Mohammad Abu Ras Ahmed,
cited, 3 n. 1
Natabudes, 58
Natauros, 68 n. 14
Nathabres, 68, 68 «. 14, 234
Nathabur River \scil. Wady], 68
Navigation between Libya and Mediter-
ranean islands, 19 n. 1
Naville, E., quoted, 125, 193 n. 2
Nazabres, 68 n. 14
Nebdeni, 64 n. 4
Nebneshi, 228
Necklaces, Libyan, 131
Neck-stalls, for the Libyan horses, 150
Nefer-ka-ra, E. Libyans rebelled against, 2 1 1
Nefret-ronpet, 230 «. 4
Nefusah, 70
Negd Arabs, hair-dressing of, 136, 137
Negro, fusion with Atlantic Hamites, 44 ;
true habitat of, 41 n. 1
Nehi, commemorates Egyptian power in
reign of Thutmose III., 213
Neith, 207 ; character of, 205 sq. ; con-
nection with Ausean Athena, 205 sqq. ;
GENERAL INDEX
sign of, 206 ; sign of, as tattoo-mark,
139 sq. ; statue of, sent to Cyrene, 207
«. 1 ; titles of, 205 n. 3, 206
Nemesian, cited, 66 ; quoted, 39 n. *
Nepherocheres. See Nefer-ka-ra
Nepos, cited, 191
Nesamones. See Nasamones
Nestent, wife of Namlot, no
Neumann, R., cited, 185 n. 12, 204 n. 1 ;
quoted, 184 n. 2, 185 n. 10
Ne-user-re reliefs, 122, 126, 129, 132, 134,
137, 147, 2"
Newberry, P. E., cited, 96
Niam Niams, shape of huts of the, 169 n. 8
Nicephorus Blemmyda, cited, 97 n. 4
Nicephorus Callistus, cited, 42 n. 9, 97
Nicives, 58
Nicocrates slays Phaedimus, 233
Nicolaus Damascenus, cited, 64, 1 10 n. 7, 1 1 1,
mn. 1, 112, 114, 142.147, 15 1 »■ 7,
153, 182 n. 2, 187 n. 1 ; quoted, 112
n. 9, 143 n. 6, 176 n. 4, 179, 179 n. 3
Niger, ancient journey to, 104 ; territory of
the, 15, 30
Nigeria, totem animals in, 177
Nigitimi, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Nigize Gaetuli, 63
Nigligemela, 233
Nigretes, had cars, 149
Nile, Libyans on west bank of, 49 ; theory
of Herodotus in regard to sources of,
104 ; traverse of the, 9
Nimr 'Ali, 143 n. z
"Nine Bows," 48 n. 2, 216
Niteris, 59, 233
Nitibrum, 234
Nitriotae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Nobadae. See Nobatae
Nobatae, called into Egypt by Diocletian,
236 ; give hostages to Maximinus, 238
Nomads, bravery of, 36 ; conservatism of,
38 ». 1 ; force of public opinion among,
36 ; modern, soff among, 36 ; in the
Sahara, 31 ; modern, vague ideas of
time, 36 ; Semitic, in Marmarica, 54
n. 2 ; sexual morality among, 37 ;
truthfulness of, 36 sq. ; western bound-
ary of, according to Herodotus, 52
Nonnus, cited, 52 n. 1, 58 «. 10, 155 n. 1,
174 n. 6, 190 n. 5, 257 n. 6
Nordic invaders of Africa, 4 1
Notitia Dignitatum, cited, 59, 63 ; quoted,
67 n. 2
Nouns, Berber, 74
Nowvelles Archives des Missions Scientifiques,
cited, 202 n. 1 1
Nuba, Lake, 49 n. 8
Nubae, a Libyan nation, 49 n. 8 ; Strabo on
the, 49 «. 8
Nubas, 45
Nubel, Firmus son of, 237
Nubia, connected geographically with the
Egyptian oases, 49 ; defined, xxi ; dis-
trict of Temeh in, 211; fusion of
Hamites and Negroes in, 43 ; Nobatae
settled in, 236
Nubians, defeated by Aristomachus, 239
Nuers, "dancing-bows" of, 145 n. 7 ; taboo
of cows' flesh among, 96 n. 9
Numides, 64 n. 4
Numidia, Libyan raids in, 234 ; raids in, 236
"Numidian" alphabet, 85
Numidians, chiefs of, not kissed, 117;
eaters of roots, 1 00 ; tactics of, 151;
used mapalia, 168 ; why so called, 255,
255 n. 2
Numidian stela, 148, 150
Nycpii, placed by Ptolemy, 63
2 93
Nygbeni, confused with Nycpii, 63 ; placed
by Ptolemy, 63
Nymphodorus, 181 n. 1
Oases, Egyptian, colonized by Rameses III.,
229 ; debatable ground, 17, 33 ; names
of, 48 11. 5 ; fusion of Hamites and
Negroes in southern, 43 ; geographic-
ally connected with Nubia, 49 ; popu-
lation of, 33 ; subject to Persians, 231 ;
when subjected, 48
Oasis Magna, 11, 174, 238
Oasis Parva, 1 1
Oasis Trinitheos, 1 1 n. 4
Oasitae, 61
Oath, Libyan form of, 179
Oaths, Egyptian, 178 n. 2
Oberlin, note citing Lactantius, 173 ; on
Vibius Sequester, 66 n. 6, 69 n. 1, 255
n. * %
Obsequens, Julius, cited, 29 n. 5
Octavius employs Psyli, 180
Odyssey, Libya in the, 95
Oea, revolt of, 234
Oebillae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Ogdaemi, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Ogdaemum Mountain, 61
Ogiplonsii, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Oil-presses, Roman, mistaken for megaliths,
159, 160 n. 1
'Okba Ibn Nafl sent into Libyan desert, 240
Olives, 26 ; in Cyraunis, 98, 99 ; in Libya, 99
Olive-wood, 27
Omphalus, Siwan Amon conjectured by
some to have form of, 193
Onions and garlic in ancient Egypt, 1 78
Ophelias slain by Agathocles, 232
Ophiogenes, snake-charmers, 179
Ophthalmia, 25, 34
Oppian, cited, 97
Ops Regina, 201-206
Oracle at Ammonium, 190; of Buto, 191
Oribasius, cited, 19 n. 2, 96 n. 3, 100, 113 n. 4
Origo human, gener., cited, 65, 66, 68
Ornament, Libyan, 129 sqq.
Ornamentation, "C Group," 250
Orosius, cited, 29 n. 5, 59 n. 3, 60 «. 1, 68,
68 n. 14, 69, 234, 235 n. 1 ; quoted, 44
n. 2, 59 n. 1, 68 n. 7, 234 n. z ; quoted,
68 n. 7
Oscillation, climatic, 24 sq.
Ostrich in E. Libya, 29, 94
Ostrich-egg shells, vessels of, 153
Ostrich-plumes, signs of rank, ii6]"«. 1 ;
worn by Libyans in helms, 149 n. 1
Ostrich-skin, shields of, 148
Ovid, cited, 173
0<vis lerwia and 0. longipes, 195
Oxen, captured by Merneptah, 96 ; in E.
Libya, 28. See Pack-oxen
Owners' marks from Marmarica, 89 sq.
Ozutae, 64
Pacho, J. R., cited, 89, 98 n. 4, 128 n. 3
Pack-oxen in Libya, 103 sq.
Palatals, permutations in Berber, 75
Pal. Ex. Fund £}uar. Stat., cited, 92 n. 4
Palla, 128 n. 1
Pallantias, Lake Tritonis called, 204
Pallas, worship of, in Syrtes, 204
Pallary, P., cited, 160
Palms, at Bahariah, 1 1 ; at Dahlah, 1 1 ; at
Galu, 10; at Hargah, 11; at Siwah,
10 ; at Wagilah, 10 ; cordage of fibre of,
153; logs of, used in construction, 1 7 1
Palm-wine. See Lakbi
Palmyra, forces of, in Egypt, 236
Panebi, burial of their kings, 182 «. 4
294
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
" Pan-Grave " people, 132
" Pan-Graves," 245
Papremis, Inarus withdraws to, 231
Paraetonium, 7
Park, M., cited, 96 n. 9
Parthey, G., cited, 48 n. 5
Parthians, tactics of, compared to those of
Libyans, 151
Particles in Berber, 74
Partsch, J., cited, 1 16, 117 n. 5, 184, 185, 187
Passero, Cape, distance to Benghazi, 18 n. 2
Passive sense in Berber, 74
Paterae, hung from barque of Siwan Amon,
194 sq.
Paulinus, Suetonius, puts down the Libyans
in the Atlas, 234
Pausanias, cited, 40, 96, 149 n. 8, 185 nn.
11, 15, 190, 191, 201, 201 n. 3, 202 ;
quoted, 185
Pectoral ornaments, Libyan, 1 3 1
Pege, 234
Peleset, or Philistines, 61 n. 5, 220, 222, 226 ;
wore feather head-dress, 130 n. 1
Pelew Islanders, 1 1 1 «. 4
Pelt a, 148
Penistasche, 122 sqq. ; rock-glyph showing,
148 ; worn by women, 113 ; worn
with open kilt, 119
Pentapolis, bravery of Christians of the, 237 ;
raided by Mazices, 238 ; recolonized,
235 n. 1
Pepi I., 211 ; Wawat mercenaries in time
of, 49 "■ 3
Pepi II., 211
Perire, battle of, 216 sq. ; location of, 216,
217 n. 1
Permutations in Berber, 74 sqq.
Perrot, G., and Chipiez, C, cited, xvi
Perroud, C, cited, xx n. 1, 101, 102 nn. 1,
3, 103, 103 nn. 1, 6, 229 n. 7, 231 n. 2 ;
quoted, 103 n. 3
Perseus, brother of Arcesilaus II., 230
Persians, 255 ; besiege Barca, 231 ; defeated
by Inarus, 231 ; enter Egypt, 239 ; ex-
pedition against Ammonium, 174 ;
harassed by Libyans, 231 ; subdue
Egypt, 239
Peruvian burials, 182
Pethut, 228
Petrie, W. M. F., cited, xiii, xiv, xv, 47
». 3, 84 k. 5, 85 n. 5, 112 «. 3, 118, 118
a. 9, 122 n. 6, 131, 168 ». 8, 215, 215
n. 2, 216 n. 9, 217 n. 1, 218 n. 1,227
n. 3 ; quoted, 218 n. 1, 230 n. 2, 236
n. 5, 249 n. 1
Petrie, W. F. M., and Duncan, J. G., xviii ;
cited, 253
Petrie Papyrus, 62 n. 2
Petroglyphs in N. Africa, 156 sq.
Petronius, cited, 102 n. 8 ; Sudanese cam-
paign of, 49
Pe-tut, tomb of, at Siwah, 28
Peulhs, 44 sq.
Phaedimus slain by Nicocrates, 233
Phaestus, 190 n. 5
Phalacra, 185
Pharusii, 255 n. 1 ; had cars, 149'; use of
horses by, 96 n. 16
Phazania, 53 n. 7 ; agriculture in, 98 ; tro-
glodytes of, 100
Phazanii, placed by Pliny, 233
Pheritime, seeks aid of Aryandes, 202
Philae, Strabo at, 49
Philaeni, barrow of the, 181 ; tomb and
altar of, 183
Philaenorum Arae, 54, 57, 197, 198, 198 n. 2
Philistines, Berbers identified with, by el-
Bekri, 257. See Peleset
Philistus, cited, 61 «. 4, 62 n. 6, 63 n. 16,
64 ; quoted, 54 n. 3
Philostorgius, cited, 42 n. 9, 66, 68, 68 n. 7,
237 ; quoted, 68 n. 6
Philostratus, quoted, 101 ». 5
Phoenician, inscription reported by Pro-
copius, 256 ; script related to Libyan,
85, 86
Phoenicians, legendary migrations of, 256
Phrases, in Berber, 74
"Phrygian" influence in Berber, 74
Piankhi stela, 109, no, 130, 134, 136, 141,
228
Piette, E., cited, 86
Pig, taboo against, 177
Pigmies, Nasamonian story of, 104
Pileus, 149 1
Pindar, cited, 97, 190 n. 1, 191, 231 n. 6 ;
quoted, 149
Pindar, Schol., 116 n. ±
Pine trees in E. Libya, 27, 151 n. 9
Pipe, double, of Libyans, 155
Piquet, V., cited, 34 n. 1, 241 n. 1
Piracy, 104 sq.
Pirates, Thekel and Peleset, 222. See Sea-
Peoples
Pitch, mineral, 142 «. 8
Place-names, analysis of E. Libyan, 78 sq. ;
Berber, eastern and western compared,
77 ; Berber, in E. Libya, 76 sqq.
Plague, 25
Plataea, chronology of Greek colonization
of, 229 n. 8. See "Seal Is."
Plato, cited, 191 n. 5, 206
Plaustra, 149 sq.
Pleiades, Libyan observance of, 179
Pliny, cited, 29 n. 5, 42 n. 12, 47, 52, 53,
53 »■ 7, 57, 58, 5 8 »• 7, 59, 6o > 6l »• ',
62, 63, 64, 66, 68, 68 n. 13, 79, 79
n. 1, 96 k. 7, 99, 102, 105, 105 nn. 4,
6, 114 «. 3, 120 n. i, 121 n. 3, 143 n. 14,
149, 149 nn. 1, 15, 153 n. 4, 168 n. n,
170, 173, 180, 180 n. 5, 181 n. 1, 183,
187, 187 n. 1, 204 n. 2, 255 n. 1, 257 ;
quoted, 58, 68 n. 13, 92 n. 1, 99 n. 6,
102 h. 9, 116 n. 2, 173 n. 2, 180, 180
n. 3, 189 n. 3, 231 n. 8, 233, 234, 255
n. 1 ; distribution of E. Libyans by, 57
Plume, figure wearing, on " C Group "
jar, 249 ; on Nubian jar-sealing, 249
Plumes, in hair of Nubian burial, 130 n. 6 ;
worn by chiefs, 115
Plural, formation of, in Berber, 74
Plutarch, cited, 14, 178 n. z, 180 n. 4, 189
k. 3, 190 n. 10, 191, 191 n. 5, 195 it. 5,
200, 201, 202, 205, 233 ; quoted, 202
Plynus, position of, 51 n. 10
Poetics, Imushagh, 154
Poinssot, L., cited, 201 n. 1
Poittier, E., cited, xvii
Polemon, quoted, 44 n. •
Pollio, Trebellius, cited, 236
Polyaenus, cited, 177 n. 4, 230 n. 8, 232 n. 4 ;
quoted, 34 n. 1
Polybius, cited, 188 n. 7, 232, 255 n. 1
Polygamy, Libyan, 108
Polyhistor, Alexander, xix n. 4
Pomegranate, 26 ; wood, 27
Porphyrius, quoted by Eusebius, 188 ». 3
" Port Bardia," 51 «. 10
Poseidon, father of Athena, 204 ; Hero-
dotus on, 185, 187
Potshard, Sardinian, design on, 121
Pottery, classes of " C Group," 250 ; Lib-
yan, 153
Pre-dynastic, defined, xxi ; Egyptian graves,
ostrich eggs in, 94 n. 1
Pre-dynastic Egyptians, burials of, 182
Pre-historic, limited meaning of, xxi
Priesthood and chieftainship, 117 sq.
Priests, garlic and onions tabooed to
Egyptian, 178
Primaudaie, E. de, cited, 102, 103, 120
n. 2
Priscian, cited, 58 n. 1
Priscus Panites, cited, 68, 190, 237
Probus, defeats Marmaridae, 236 ; slays
Aradion, 181
Processions, at Lake Tritonis, 204 ; cere-
monial, 155 ; of the Deus Fatidicus,
1 94 sq.
Proclus, cited, 195 n. 5, 205
Procopius, cited, xx, 40, 58 nn. 11, 13, 63,
67, 98 n. o, 100, 108, 1 16, 118, 1 19 n. 3,
144, 146, 149 n. 3, 151, 153, 178, 195
n. 4, 197, 197 n. 6, 207, 208, 236, 237,
238, 239, 256 ; quoted, 40 «. 1, 100
n. 4, 108, 1 16, 183 n. 6, 256
Promiscuity, sexual, unknown in E. Libya,
1 10 sq.
Pronouns, personal, in Berber, 74
Prophecy, the god of Ammonium primarily
one of, 191, 194
Prosoditae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Prosopis, 61
Prosopitae, 61
Proto-Berber, defined, xxi ; ear-ring from
grave, 131 ; element in Egyptian, 81 ;
the language of the E. Libyans, 76 sqq.
Proto-dynastic, defined, xxi
Proto-Semitic language, 73
Psammetichus, Inarus son of, 231
" Psaphon," story of Maximus Tyrius con-
cerning, 186
PSBA, cited, 80 n. 6, 184 n. 5, 227 n. 3
Psebo, " Lake," 49 ; Strabo on, 49
Pselchis. See Dakkah
Psylli, antipathetic to poisonous animals,
180 ; attacked by Nasamones, 174, 231,
231 n. 8 ; battle with south wind, 58 ;
descended from Psyllus, 257 ; destruc-
tion of, as told by Herodotus, 1 74 ; ex-
pedition of, against the South Wind, as
told by Nonnus, 1 74 n. 6 ; near Lasanici,
62 ; nomadism of, 91 ; placed by Hero-
dotus, 52 : by Pliny, 58 ; by Ptolemy,
63 ; by Strabo, 55 ; snake -charming
among, 1 7 9 jy. ; water-tanks of, 171
" Psyllic Gulf," 52 n. 9
Psyllus, ancestor of Psylli, 257 ; tomb of,
58, 183, 257
Ptah-Tatenen, Heliopolis stronghold of, 216
Ptolemy, 71 ; cited, 44 n. 2, 47, 48 n. 5,
51 «. 11, 52, 54, 57 n. 3, 58, 59, 59 ». 1,
60 n. 1, 61, 61 nn. 1, 2, 3, 5, 63, 64,
65, 6 6, 67, 71, 79, 102, 114 n. 2, 168,
185 nn. 1, 10, 188 n. 8, 232 n. 4, 234,
255 n. 1 ; distribution of the E. Libyans,
60 sqq. ; his work mathematical rather
than geographical, 60 ; quoted, xx n. 1,
42 nn. 9, 12, 49 n. 8, 52 n. 12, 61 sqq.,
185, 234 n. 9 ; rectification of his map,
Ptolemy Apion bequeaths Cyrenaica to
Rome, 232
Ptolemy Soter, 200
Pudentius, advice of, to Sergius, 238
Puemre inscription, 48 n. 5
Punic personal names, Haman rare in, 198
Punic terra-cottas, 199
Punic War, first, 232 ; third, 232
Punt, Min of, 169 ». 8
Purista, 61 n. 5
Quadriga, said to be derived from Libyans,
149
GENERAL INDEX
2 95
Quatrefages, J. L. A. de, cited, 41
Quibell, J. E., cited, xv, 93 n. 9, 95 n. 1,
122, 184, 210 n. 1
Quinquegentes, rebellion of the, 236
Quirinius, P. Sulpicius, defeats Libyans, 234
Quivers, Libyan, 145, 149
Ra, 219
Radicals, Berber, 74 ; pronominal, in
Egyptian and Berber, 81
Raht, 128 n. 3
Rainaud, R., cited, 26 n. 1, 28 n. 1
Rainbow, regarded animistically in Libya,
176
Rainfall in E. Libya, 20
Rain-making, 179 ; Ausean, 204 sq.
Ram, bronze, charm against sterility, 202
n. 1 1 ; Dionysus or Heracles saved by
a, 189 ; guides fugitives to desert city,
200 ; position of, among the Libyan
sacra, 195 sqq. ; the sacred animal of
the Deus Fatidicus, 195
Rams, glyphs of, 196 sq. ; heads of, as
amulets, 199
Ram-skins, dyed red, 128 n. 3
Rameses II., storms Satuna, 151 ; troubled
by Libyans, 214
Rameses III., 227, 228 ; booty taken by, 145,
146, 149; captives of, 114; conquers
Ded, Meshken, Meryey, Wermer, and
Themer, 221 ; Egyptian oases under,
48 n. 5, 229 ; Libyan wars of, 220 sqq. ;
second Libyan victory of, 224 ; spoil
taken in second Libyan war, 95 sq.
Rameses V., tomb of, 159
Rapsa, 234
Ras ed-Dabbah, 7
Ras el-Hillil, 2, 6 ; distance to Cape
Matapan, 18
Ras el-Kanays, 7
Ras Mizratah = Cephalae Promontorium, 55
Ras el-Mudawr, 5, 6 ; supposed coastal sub-
sidence at, 6 n. 1
Ras er-Ramil, 4
Ras Teyones, 4
Ras et-Tin, 4 ; distance to Gaudo, 18 «. 1
Reboud, V., cited, xvi, 84 n. 3, 89, 89 «. 4,
184 «. 6
Rebu, 46 ; attacked by Meshwesh, 223 ;
defeated by Egyptians, 212 ; war of
Rameses III. with, 222 ; force Tehenu
to join confederacy against Egypt, 216;
invaded by Egyptians, 50 ; location
of, 51 ; movement eastward of, 227 ;
tattooing of, 138
Reciprocal sense in Berber, 74
"Red Land, the," 219
Refugees tattooed, 139 n. 6
Re/iedet-vesseh in spoil of Meryey, 2 1 8
Reinach, S., cited, 261 n. 1
Reisner, G. A., cited, xv, xxii, 122 n. 6, 127,
130 n. 6, 133 n. 4, 145, 199 n. 3 ;
quoted, 245
Religion, Libyan, 172 sqq., 207 sq. ; Egyptian
analogies to, 207 ; of " C Group,"
250
Renan, E., cited, 73
Renier, L., cited, 80, 236 «. 3
Renouf, P. le P., cited, 40 n. 1, 227 «. 3
Retneb, 230 n. 4
Rhea, 201
Rhinoceros horns, Libyan traffic in, 102
Rhyme in Imushagh poetics, 154
Ridgeway, W., cited, 28 n. 4
Rif, defined, xxii
Rifa'Jyah dervishes as snake-charmers, 179
Rio de Oro, negroid Berbers of, 256
Rites of desolation, 203
Ritual festival in E. Libya, 179
Robe, Libyan, 116, 119 ; with borders, 112,
119 ». 8
Rochemonteix, M. de, cited, 81
Rocky Mountains, absence of blonds in, 41
Roeder, G., cited, 132, 215 ». 6
Rohlfs, G., cited, 28 n. 1, 173
Rokniah, crania from, 246
Roman, apotheosis of emperors, 183 n, 3 ;
influence at Slunt, 158 ; inscriptions,
184 n. 2 ; inscription near Constantine,
188 ; lamp, head of Gurzil on, 188 ;
penetration of the Sahara, 105 ; temples
in Africa, 201
Roman Africa, natives used Latin names in,
256
Romanies, nomadism of, 91
Romans, engage Libyan cavalry, 151 ; in
Phazania, 233 sq. ; penetrate to Aethi-
opia, 234 ; protect Egypt from Libyan
raids, 236 ; rule E. Libya, 233
Roscher, W. H., cited, 202 n. 5, 206 n. 1
Rosellini, I., cited, xvi, 119 n. 7, 126 nn. 1
and 3, 146 n. 5, 147 nn. 4, 9, 156 n. 1
Rouge, J. de, cited, 205
Royle, L. V., cited, 11 n. 6, 32 n. 1, 143 n. 3
RT, cited, 80 n. 6, 205 n. 2, 254 n. 1
Ruaditae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
Rubetae, Psyllic conjuring with, 180
Ruinart, D., cited, 169, 235
Ruperti, G. A., cited, 179 n. 2
Rus-, absence of, in East Libyan place-names,
78
Sabaean origin of Libyan writing not proved,
85
Sabarbares, 58
Sabrah, 71
Sabrata, 233
Saburbures, 64
Saci, 64 n. 4
Sacrifice, Libyan, to sun and moon, 187
SACTVT IHIMIR, 184
Saddles, Libyan horses ridden without, 150
Safaitic, and Libyan scripts, 85 ; Gheytah
inscriptions allied to, 253
Safsaf (in Cyrenaica), Libyan letters at, 89
Sagum worn by Libyan notables, 1 2 1
Sahara, absence of megaliths in, 190 ; arrow-
heads in, 145 ; elliptical tombs in
northern, 178 ; Libyco-Berber glyphs
in the, 196 ; permanent centres in, 31 ;
petroglyphs in, 148 ; rigam of the,
247 ; western, climatic changes of, 25 ;
zagharit in, 1 54
Sahel, defined, xxii
Sa-hu-re, 48, 95, 96, 108 n. 1, 113, 122, 125,
130, 131, 134, 184, 211
es-Sa'id, Berbers in, 70
Saii/or Saci, 64 n. 4
Saint-Martin, V. de, cited, 42, 5 8 « . 1 3, 64 n. 8
Sais, Athena of, and Ausean Athena com-
pared, 206 ; chief seat of Neith cultus,
205
Saliva, used as cure for snake-bites, 179, 180
Sallust, cited, 25, 37, 80 n. 4, 168, 169 n. 3,
170, 183 ; quoted, 108, 108 n. 2, 255,
256
Salt, Libyan, 102 ; used in building, 171 sq.
waxed and waned with the moon, 189
n. 3.
Samamycii, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Sandals, 116, 127
Sand-dwellers, Asiatic, 211
Sand-storm, army of Santariah overwhelmed
by, 175 ; Persian force overwhelmed
by, 174
Sanhafah Berbers, 241
Santariah, 70 n. 1 ; story of the last pre-
Islamic king of, 175
Sard, Libyan trade in, 102
Sardinia, geographical relation to Libya, 19 ;
ram's-head amulets in, 199 ; rich in
metals, 144 ; structures attributed to
Cronus in, 166
Satuna, defended by Libyans and Asiatics,
259 ; fortress of, 151
Saturnus, the African, 201 sq. ; offerings to,
202
Saulcy, M. de, cited, 85
Sceptres, 1 1 6
Schaff, P., cited, 236 n. 10
Scharutana, 61 n. 5. See Sherden
Scina, 208 n. 1
Scipio, fired camp of Syphax, 168 ; in
Africa, 232
Schiaparelli, E., cited, 76 n. i.
Schirmer, H., cited, 39 n. 2, 42 n. 2
Schnoudi, Coptic life of, cited, 238
Scholz, J. H. A., cited, 89
Schroder, P., cited, 80 n. 5
Schweinfurth, G, cited, 169 n. 8, 202 n. 11
Scillitani, martyrdom of, 235
Scorpions, Psylli cured stings of, 180
Script. See Writing
Sculptures, Libyan, 157
Scylax, cited, xix n.6,xxn. 1, 51 nn. 10, 11,
52 nn. 7, 12, 14, 54, 102 n. 3, 103, 198
n. 1 ; quoted 40 n. 5, 91 n. 7, 99 n. 2,
1 14 n. 2, 203 ». 6 ; date of, 55 ; distribu-
tion of Libyan tribes by, 54 sq.
Sea-burials, 181
Sea-gods, Libyan, 185
Sea-peoples, Libyans associated with, 51, 186
"Seal Island," 5 ; stone enclosures on, 183 ;
rigam on, 247 sq. See Plataea
Seals, Minoan, 28 n. 5
Seasons, changes in, 202
Sebek, cult of, 179 n. 8
Sebhah, xxii
Sedira, Belkassem Ben, 179
Selden, J., cited, 186, 256
Selene-Luna, relation to "Saturnus," 201
Seli, in late Roman times, 66 ; and Selaeones,
63 ; towns of, 66 n. 15
Selimah, 12, 16
Semerus, 62
Semites, Africans claiming descent from, 256
Semitic gods in battle, 187 ». 15 ; languages,
conjectured affinity of, to Berber, 73 ;
influence in Cyrenaica, 185 ; scripts,
Gheytah inscriptions allied to, 253
Senam Msilah, 247
Senegal River, 39 ; Mohammadan negroes
of the, 256 ; Upper, cow-taboo in, 96
"■ 9
Senegambia, Berber fusion with Negroes in,
42
Sentites, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Senusi at Garabub and Zeytun, 10
Seped, 46, 47 ; in first Libyan war of
Rameses III., 222 ; plunder Egypt, 220
n. 4 ; position of, unknown, 51
Septimius Severus, skilled in astrology, 176 ;
establishes security of Tripolis, 235
Serapeum stela of Harpeson, 109, 227 n. 3
Sergi, G., cited, xiii, 41, 86 n. 4, 118 n. 9
Sergius, governor of Tripoli tana, 238 ;
murders chiefs of Leuathae, 238
Serpents, serve as guides to Alexander, 200.
See Snakes
Sertorius opens grave of Antaeus, 181
Servius, cited, 148 «. 5, 189 n. 8, 190, 195
nn. 2, 5, 200 ; quoted, 148 n. 8, 190 n. 10
Sesostris, captures Libyan cattle, 95. See
Usertesen
296
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Set-erda'is, 230 ». 4
Seti I., engages Libyans, 213 ; paintings
from tomb of, 119, 138 ; Libyan cam-
paign of, 226
Setnakht, begins XXth Dynasty, 220, 220B. 1
Seton-Karr, H. W., cited, xiv
Shabet Umm el-Harab, reliefs at, 120, 158 ;
ruin of basilica at, 208 n. 3
Shaheded, Libyan divinity, 184
Shai, 46, 47, 224 ; position of, unknown, 51
Sharkiah Is., 51 n. 11
Shat-nemay, 254
Shaw, T., cited, 179 n. 4, 236 n. 3
Shay tan, 175
Sheaths. See Penistasche
Sheep, among E. Libyans, 95, 96 ; Barbary,
anciently found in E. Libya, 195 ; fed
with milk and flesh, 100 and h. 6
Shekelesh, 61 n. 5, 220 ; identification of,
216 n. 7 ; in alliance with Meryey, 150;
long swords of, 144. See Sicels
Shelley, G. E., cited, 29 n. 3
Sherden, 61 n. 5, 216, 220, 226 ; as allies of
Meryey, 150 ; as traders to Libya, 121 ;
circumcision among, 140 ; employed
metal, 143 ; first mentioned, 214 n. 5 ;
identification of, 216 n. 7 ; in Sardinia,
144
Sheshonk I., genealogy of, 228 ; sends com-
missioners to Dahlah, 229
Sheshonk III., Libyan officers of, 229
Sheykh Sidi Suleyman, moled of, 156
Shields, Libyan, of ostrich-skin, 148
Ships, Carthaginian, with ram's head at
prow, 199
Shott, defined, xxii
Shott el-Gerid, z, 13
Shurifa, false, 256
Sibilants, permutations of, in Berber, 75
Sicels, 216 «. 7 ; pushed out by Umbro-
Latins, 226. See Shekelesh
Sicily, geographical relation to Libya, 1 8 ;
megaliths of, 160 ; structures attributed
to Cronus in, 166
Side-lock as badge of office, 137 ; of Imushagh
women, 135 ; of Libyans, 134 sq. ; on
ram of Anion, 197 ; reasons for, 136
Sidonians, establish factory of Cambe, 229 n. 6
Sidonius, Apollinaris, cited, 66, 66 n. 15, 68,
68 n. 7, 176 n. 6
Silius Italicus, cited, 97, 104 n. 1, 105, 106,
117, 119 n. 6, i2i, 122, 137, 146, 148,
149 n. 1, 156, 182 n. 1, 195 n. 3 ; quoted,
105, 106, 126, 127 n. 5, 137, 143, 144,
146 n. 11, 147 n. 3, 148 nn. 1, 1 1, 149,
150, 181, 199
Silphium, 28 ; perhaps traded from Libya to
Minoan Crete, 101
Silvanus, 202
Silver drinking-vessels, 218
Sinai, Libyan inscription of, 84 ; nomads
from, 54 n. 2
Sinifere, Libyan god, 184
Sinuhe, Romance of, cited, 95, 212
Siret, L., cited, 226
Sirius, Libyan belief regarding, 176 n. 7
es-Siut, 30
Siwah Oasis, 70 n. 1, 96 ; Anonymous history
of, 1 7T,i x 73 n - 1 '» T 75i x 77> 2 °° i archi-
tectural remains at, 230 ; citrus wood
of, 102 ; dialect of, 76 ; dogs eaten as
medicine at, 177 ; Egyptian name of,
48 n. 4 ; Egyptian occupation of, 189 ;
Etearchus dynast of, 104 ; flutes used
in, 155 ; garlic-eating at, 177, 203 ;
language, 84 ; moled of Sheykh Sidi
Suleyman, 156 ; population, 32 sq.;
rise and decline of, 197 ; sacred char-
acter of, 191 ; superstitions concerning
'ayns at, 172 sq. ; use of palm-timber
in, 27 ; town, 10. See Ammonium
Skins, as mats, 153 ; kerabah, 152 ; panther,
in Tehenu tribute, 213 ; skin-garment,
thonged, 128 n. 3 ; used as clothing,
121
Sky, "leaked" at Cyrene, 201
Slave trade, Libyan, 103
Slings, Libyan, 114, 153
Slunt reliefs, 108 n. 1, 113, 128, 158
Smith, G. A., cited, 86, 92
Smith, G. E., cited, 122, 159 n. 3 ; quoted,
2 45
Smith, R. M. and Porcher, E. A., cited, 28
n. 1
Smith, W. R., cited, 128 n. 3, 139 n. 6, 154
n. 2, 174 n. 2, 180 n. 6, 187 n. 15, 191
n. 1 ; quoted, 187 n. 2
Smyth, Captain, visit of, to Ghirzah, 157
Snake, a Nigerian totem, 177 ; possibly the
Psyllic totem, 180 n. 6 ; snake-charming,
1 79 sq. _
Sobarensis, title of Saturnus, 201 n. 16
Socnopaeus, cult of, 179 n. 8
Soff, among modern Berbers, 36
Sohnah, 14, 15, 30
Solar emblems on Saturnus-stelae, 201 ;
symbols, cruciform, 209
Soleym-Ben-Mansur, 47 n. 14 ; incursion of
the, 72
Solinus, cited, 102, 120 n. 1, 230 n. 1, 234
n. 7
Solium, gulf of, 6
Solomon, Byzantine general, 108 ; defeated
by the Leuathae, 239
Solomon (King), synagogue at Borium
attributed to, 208
Solubbi, nomadism of, 91
Somalis, 45 ; plumes as tokens among the,
1 30 n. i
Songs, Libyan, 154
Sophocles, quoted, 97, 149
Sources of Libyan history, 210
Sourdille, C, cited, 189 n. 4, 190, 195 n. 5,
205
South wind, battle of Psylli with, 58 ;
dreaded in North Africa, 175 ; possible
connection of, with Gurzil, 188 n. 8 ;
stone sacred to the, 174
Spain, firing of bronze age sites in, 226 ;
Mauri in, 235 ; megaliths of, 160 ;
traditional invasion of el-Moghreb
from, 255 sq.
Spartianus, cited, 176, 235
Spear, the cateia, 143 ; Libyan, 146
Spendius, mutiny of, 232
Spoons, 152
" Sporran," figure on " C Group " jar, 249
Stadiasmus Maris Magni, cited, 198 nn. 2, 3 ;
quoted, 161 n. 3, 234 n. 4
Stale of goats, 96 n. 3, 113
Stanley, C. V., cited, 84, 84 n. 2, 173, 173
n. 11, 177
Stars, animistic view of, 176
Statius, cited, 190 ; Scholiast on, 189 «. 9
Statue with penistasche, 125
Steindorf, G., cited, 28, 130, 171 n. 1, 230
n. 4
Stelae, " C Group," at Dakkah, 250 ; of
Saturnus, 201 ; from Tanis, 214
Stellar observance, Libyan, 176 n. 7
Stephanus Byzantinus, cited, xix, 52 nn. 3,
9> '3, 19. 53 nn. 1, 2, 7, 54, 64 ; quoted,
52 n. 9, 53 n. i, 66 n. 6, 77 n. 1, 185,
185 n. 9
Stones, for slinging, 143 ; sacred, 173 sq.
Stozas, reinforces the Leuathae, 239
Strabo, distribution of Libyan tribes by,
55 sq., cited, xx «. 7, 14, 49, 52 n. 7,
55, 56, 79, 86 n. 1, 96 n. 16, 97, 98,
99 nn. 2, 9, 100, 100 «. 5, 118, 119,
121, 127, 128 n. 2, 133, 143 k. 5, 146,
148 k. 9, 149, 150, 177, 183, 191, 194
n. 2, 195, 195 n. 5, 200 n. 3, 233 n. 6,
255 n. 1 ; quoted, 49 n. 6, 55, 96, 102,
102 n. 9, 121, 133, 150
Stragula, 119
" Strong dialects " in Berber, 74
Strongholds, Libyan, in Cyrenaica, 160;
in E. Libya, 151
Stumbling, Siwan superstition in connection
with, 173
Suah, or Benu-el-Wasuah, 70 n. 1
Sudan, Negro graves of the, 246 ; trade of
Elephantine with, 211
Sudanese, anciently wore plumes, 130 ;
blacks at Siwah, 178
Sud Oranais, cairns of the, 247
Suetonius, cited, 42
Sun, all Libyans sacrificed to the, 187;
Fountain of the, at Ammonium, 173
Sun-Bull, in Egypt, 188
Sun-God, 187 sq.
Superstitions, Siwah, 172 sq.
Sur el-Ghazhlan, inscription of, 236 n. 4
Sus, rams worshipped between Aghmat and,
197
Sutekh, 214
Swastika in Gheytah inscription, 254
Swearing. See Oaths
Swine, not bred in Libya, 189
Swords, among Libyans, 142, 143, 146 ; of
the Meshwesh, 217
Sycamore, 27
Synagogue at Borium, 208
Synesius, active against robbers, 237 ; cited,
66, 67, 96, 185 n. 11, 235 n. 1, 237 n. 6,
248 ; quoted, 68 n. 1, 97 n. 13
Syphax, camp of, fired by Scipio, 168
Syphilis, 25 ; eating of puppies as cure for, 177
Syria, ethnic shift in, 220, 226 ; megaliths
in, 160
Syrian character of Libyan metal vases, 153
Syrian, reproduction of, as a Libyan by
Sergi, 118 n. 9
Syrians and Libyans, 259
Syrtes, regarded as sacred to Triton and
Pallas, 204
Syrtic coast, withdrawal of Psylli from, 52 ;
littoral zone, towns of, 30 ; navigation
of, dangerous, 105
Syrtica Regio, coins of, 106 ; fish-eaters of,
177 ; local desiccation of, 27
Syrtis Major, 2, 3, 62, 63 ; Berbers south of
the, 71 ; entrance to the, 225 n. 7 ;
forts in the, 161 ; Jews in, 208 n. 1 ;
tomb of Psyllus on, 257 ; Minor, 64
Taboo, against birds, 28 ; against cow's
flesh, 96 n. 9, 132 sq. ; against fish
among Aethiopians, 141 ; against pig,
associated with moon-cultus, 189 ;
possibly of matriarchal origin, 176
Tabudium, 233
Tabula Peutingereana, cited, 63, 66 nn. 13,
15, 185 «. 12, 197, 197 „. 10 ; quoted,
185, 208 n. 1
Tacfarinas, revolt of, 152, 234
Tacitus, cited, 58, 234
Tactics, Libyan, 150
T-affixes, place names with, 76 sq.
Tails, ceremonial, 116
Talgae, 58, 59, 233
Talmud, the Jerusalem, cited, 208 n. 2
Tama risks, 27
GENERAL INDEX
297
Tanis Stela, 214
Tank, 198; African cynophagy and, 177;
confused with Dea Coelestis, 203 ; cult
of, in Carthage, 177
" Tank Point," 5
Tanning agents, 27
Tantah, Moslem Moled at, 92
Tapanitae, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Tatahuin, 30 ; cynophagy at, 177
Tattooing, among E. Libyans, 137 sqq. ;
rank designated by, 116; Thracian,
139; religious, 187; of " C Group,"
250 ; Neith symbol, 206
Taucheira, 52
Tautamei, 65, 68
Teda, 15
Tedemait Oases, 15
Tegehe n abbar, 115
Tegehe n beddar, 115
Tehen-Buyuwawa, 227 «. 3
Tehenu, 46, 223 ; confounded by Egyptians
with Temehu, 252 ; conquered by
Amenhotep III., 213 ; by Rameses II.,
214; by Seti I., 213; defeated by
Egyptians, 2 1 2 ; generic for Westerner,
57 ft. 1 ; Hatshepsut's tribute from the,
93, 213 ; in conflict with Thutmose
III., 213 ; invaded, 223 ; location of,
51 ; meaning of name, 40 ; overcome
by Meshwesh, 150
Tehenut, district of, 252
Tekn<w, 194
Tel Amun, the "Hill of Amon," 19S
Tel el-Amarna paintings, 94 «. 1, 118 ft. 7,
. 137
Teli-Sagha glyph, 93 n. 9, 94 sq., 156 sq.
Tell, defined, xxii
Temeh, district of, 211 ; inhabitants of,
plunder Egypt, 220 n. 4 ; invaded by
Yam, 49 ; penetrated by Merneptah, 219
Temehu, 46 ; called " westerners," 46 ft. 9 ;
chieftains of, in tomb of Seti I., 138 ;
location of, 49, 51 ; and "C Group,"
249 n. 3, 251 ; southern extension of,
43 sq. ; spears of, 146 ft. 5 ; war with
negroes of Yam, 211
Tementit, aerolith in kasr of, 173 ; sculp-
ture at, 197
Temperatures, in E. Libya, 20 sq.
Temples, Afro-Roman, 201
Temsepeh, 228
■" Tens " or councillors, Libyan, 114, 114ft. 5,
223
Tents, Libyan, 168
7V/»r-vessels in spoil of Meryey, 2 1 8
Terence, cited, 103 ft. 1
Teresh, identification of, 216 ft. 7 ; in alli-
ance with Meryey, 150 ; join the Lib-
yans against Egypt, 216
Terms, definitions of, xxi sq.
Terra d'Otranto, megaliths of, 160
" Terra rossa " of Cyrenaica, 5 1
Tertullian, cited, 143, 189 n. 8, 202 ; quoted,
183 ft. 3
Thamudean and Libyan scripts, 85 ; Ghey-
tah inscriptions allied to, 253
Thanyrus installed in place of Inarus, 231
Thapsagum, 234
Tharrus, Carthaginian imports at, 199
Thebes, Amon of, identified with the Deus
Fatidicus of Siwah, 189 ; in Boeotia,
Thekel, 222, 226 ; defeated, 222 ; ethnic
shift of, 220 ; held Dor, 224, 226
Themer, beaten by Rameses III., 221 ;
leader in first Libyan war against
Rameses III., 222
Theodosius, Count, crushes Firmus, 237
Theodosius II., activity of Blemmyes in
reign of, 237 sq.
Theophanes, cited, 230 «. 1, 239 ; quoted,
239 ». 6
Theophrastus, cited, 102, 149 «. 1, 230 «. 1
Theopompus, cited, 232
Thera, Greek colonists from, 97, 229
Theste, battle of, 230
Thothmes IV., panel of, 127, 133
Thracians, pushed into the Balkans, 226 ;
tattooing among, 139
Thread, 153
Thrige, J. P., cited, 28 n. 1, 233 «. x
Throne, of Meryey, 153
Thuben, 233
Thucydides, cited, 25 ft. 1, 231, 232
Thugga, bilingual of, 84, 202 ft. 11
Thutmose I., victory over Ekbet, 2 1 3
Thutmose III. smites Tehenu, 213
Thyon. See Citrus wood
Thysdrus, elevation of Gordianus Pius at,
235
Tibbus, 45
Tibesti, huts of, 170 ft. 1 ; mountains of,
12, 13 ; rock glyphs of, 150, 209 ;
Tibesti range. See Tu
Tidamensii, placed by Ptolemy, 63
Tidt mta Musa. See Ayn Musa
Tifinagh alphabet, 85 ; compared with
Libyan, 88 ; earliest examples mediaeval,
25
et-Tigani, cited, 177 n. 5
Tigre and Assyrian, 73
Time, in the Berber verb, 74 ; Libyan
method of reckoning, 176 «. 4
Timhy stones of Wawat, 48
Tinci Ausari, 93
Tissot, C, cited, xiv, xx, 41, 42 ft. 2, 78 n.
4, 79, 86, 99, 102, 102 ft. 6, 169 «. 3,
170, 185 n. 12, 204 ft. 1
Tisuah, Suah, or Benu el-Wasuah, 70 ft. 1
Tlemsan, 71
Tolls, growth of, 107
Tolmeytah, 5, 6, 30
Tomatoes, 26
Tombeau de la Chr^tienne, 247
Torcular presses, 99, 189 sq.
Totem, serpent perhaps the Psyllic, 180 ft. 6
Totemic taboos, 176, 177
Totius Orbis Descriptio, cited, 68 n. 7
Touareg. See Tuareg, Berbers, Imushagh,
Libyans
Tour, E. du, cited, 158
Toutain, J., cited, 169, 1S5 n. 14, 202 ;
quoted, 201, 203 n. 5
Towns, agricultural and trade, 30 ; Libyan,
92, 93, 107
Toyeh, the district of, 216
Trade, general character of Libyan, 107
Trade-routes in interior of E. Libya, 14
Transport, means of, 103 sq.
Trarza Moors, 42
Travel, desert, 16
Traverses, of the Libyan Desert, 8 ; of the
littoral zone, 2
Tremearne, A. J. N, cited, 195 ft. 1.
Trenchers, Libyan, 152
Trinitheos Oasis, n ft. 4
Tripoli, neighbourhood of, 3 ; Tripoli
town, 30 ; native quarter of, 169
Tripolitana, cistvaens of, 160 ; fortresses of,
repaired by Justinian, 238 ; population
of, 32, 33 ; Venetian trade with, 102,
103 ; wadys of, 3
Triton, venerated at Lake Tritonis, 186,
187 ; worship of, in Syrtes, 204 ; River,
western border of the Machlyes, xx «. 1,
52
Tritonis, female counterpart of Triton, 186 ;
mother of Athena, 204
Tritonis, Lake, 156, 187; called "Pallantias,"
204 ; cultus of Athena at, 203 sqq. ,
deities of, 186 ; divides nomads and
sedentaries, xx, 92 ; position of, xix sq.,
xx n. 1 ; yearly festival at, 9 1
Troglita, Joannes. See Johannes Troglita
Trogloditica, Aethiopia, lizards anciently
eaten in, 177
Troglodytes, Aethiopian, 103 ; in Libya,
168. See Phazania
Trojans, Maxyes said to have been descended
from, 226
TSGS Maps, 2 «. 2, 4 n. 1
Tu, 12, 13
Tuareg, include many tribes, 68 ft. 13. See
Berbers, Imushagh, Libyans
Tuat, aerolith in Kasr of Tementit in, 173
Tuggurt, temperatures at, 22 ; territory of, 1 3
Tuguria, 168 ft. 12
Tukrah, 6, 30
Tummo, 12, 15
Tunics, Libyan, 116, 119
Tunisia, eastern, population, 32, 33
Turdetani, alphabet of, 86 ; written litera-
ture of, 86 ft. 1
" Turso-Pelasgic," 74
Turumbask (throwing-stick), Sudanese, 144
Tusidde, mountain, 13
Tylor, E. B., cited, 181, 182, 201 nn. 2, 3
Tylor, J. J., cited, xvi, 194
Ty-m-h-nw, 215 «. 2
Tyre, aided by Lubim, 258
Tyrrhenians enter Italy, 226
Tyrsi, 216 ft. 7
Udan, Mountain, superstition concerning,
174
Udnah, mosaic at, 169
Uhet road, 211
Umbriculum, form of Amon resembling, 193
Umbro-Latins, Italiot, 226
Umm Beydah, relief at, 130 ; stela, 130
Umm es-Soghayr, asses of, 96
Umm esh-Shiattah, 10
Un-Amon, 230 ft. 4
Unger, G, cited, 61 «. 5
Uni, Egyptian officer under Pepi I., 211 ;
recruits Wawat mercenaries, 49 ft. 3
Usertesen I., pectoral of, 212 ; raids Rebu,
212. See Sesostris
Usertesen III., 212
Usermare-Meriamon-is-Chastiser-of-Temeh,
222
Usermare-Meriamon (town), 224
Ut-res, 48 ft. 5
Uzalae, placed by Ptolemy, 64
Valerius Maximus, cited, 183 ft. 4 ; quoted,
85 n. 3, 117 ft. 7
Vamacures, 58
Vandals, 40 ; cross into Africa, 237 ; did not
originate Libyan writing, 85 ; fall of
the, 238
Vases, of metals, 142, 153
Vater, cited, 186 ft. 3
Vaux, C. de, cited, 70 n. 5
Vaux, W. S. W., cited, 198 n. 5
Vegetius, cited, 178 n. 1
Venabula, 146 n. 4
Venetes, reach Adriatic, 226
Venice, trade of, with Tripolitana, 102, 103
Verb, in Berber, 74 ; Egyptian, Semitic
character of, 81
Vergil, cited, 66, 168 ; quoted, 66, 92 n. 3,
105 ft. 4
2<2
298
THE EASTERN LIBYANS
Vertumnus, 202
Vespasian, revolt of Oea and Leptis Magna
in time of, 234
Vessels, Libyan, of bark, 144 ; taken from
Meryey, 217, 218. See Cups, Jars,
Vases
Victor, S. Aurelius, cited, 235, 236
Victor Vitensis, cited, 42 n. 12, 98 n.'o, 143
n. 5
Victoria Nyanza, absence of blonds in up-
lands about, 41
Vicus Iudaeorum, the modern Gheytah, 253
Vilius Sequester, cited, 66 n. 11, 68, 69, 173 ;
quoted, 66, 68 n. 13
Virginity, moral consciousness of, 1 1 1
Virgins, in festival of Ausean Athena, 204
Vischer, H., cited, 14, 146 «. 1, 168
Viviani, D., cited, 26 n. 1
Vopiscus, cited, 66, 120, 236 ; quoted, 181
n. 9
Wady, defined, xxii
Wady Akarit, 2
Wady Augidit, divination at graves at, 178
Wady Dernah, 5
Wady Dra'ah, 39
Wady et-Talat, 8
Wady Farag, 3
Wady Gharrah, 5
Wady Igharghar, 25
Wady Kerayb, 5, 63
Wady Natrun, 8, 61, 218 n. 4
Wady Zemzem, 157
Wagilah, Oasis of, 3, 9 sq. ; dialect of, 76 ;
town of, 30
Wagilans, pipes of the, 155
Wains, Gaetulian, 149
Walters, H. B., cited, 261 n. 1
Wanyanga or Wadyanga, 15
War Oasis, 12, 15
War-bonnets, Amerind, 1 30 n. 1
War-dances, 155 sq.
Wargla, 15, 30
Water-skin, 149
Wawat, location of, 49 ; negroes of, 46 ;
Timhy stones from, 48
Wayheset, 117 ; sent to Dahlah, 229
" Weak dialects," in Berber, 74
" Wed Draa." See Wady Dra'ah
Weisgerber, H., cited, 39 n. 1, 42, 43, 73,
106 n. 6, 138, 139
Welcker, F. G., cited, 181 n. 4
Wells, superstitions concerning, 172 sq.
Wermer, beaten by Rameses III., 221
Weshesh, 220
Weshtehet, master-caravaneer, 229
Wiedemann, A., cited, 184, 205 n. 2, 230 n. 3
Wild beasts in E. Libya, 93 ; " Wild-Beast
Libya," 29
Wilken, S., cited, 111 n. 4
Wilkin, A. See Maclver, D. R.
Wilkinson, J. G., cited, xv, xvi, 26 n. 1, 152
n. 2
Winds, animistic conception of, 175 ; pre-
valent, in E. Libya, 19 sqq. ; wind-
daemons, Assyrian, 176 n. 2. See South
Wind
Wine, among Libyans, 99 ; Nasamones lose
a victory by indulgence in, 234
Winnebagos, burials of the, 182
Woenig, F., cited, 26 n. i
Women, as seeresses among the Mauri, 178 ;
dress of Libyan, 128 ; drove their
husbands' chariots in battle, 149 ;
fractured arms of the Predynastic
Egyptian, 205 n. 1 ; hair-dressing of,
134; in Berber tradition, 113; in pro-
cessions of the Deus Fatidicus, 195 ;
Psyllic, did not charm serpents, 179 n. 9
Writing, Libyan, 84 sqq.
Xanthochroids, in Africa, 39 sq. ; their
origin, 41 ; Nordic, 160
Xerxes, Aethiopians in army of, 145 ; leather
coats used by Libyans in army of, 148 ;
Libyan charioteers of, 149 ; Libyans
in army of, 143, 231
"X-Group" burials in Nubia, 182
el Yahudiah, 208 n. 1
el-Ya'kubi, 69, 70
Yam, expedition of, against Temeh, 49 ;
Negroes of, 46, 211
el-Yemen, 257
Yeshkhuns of Dardestan, 41 «. 7
Yewepet, 1 1 5
Yezid Ibn Abi Hablb, quoted, 240
Yisheb-mesh, 254
Yumanas, burials of the, 182
Zabbar, graves of the, 178
Zacynthus, brother of Arcesilaus II., 230
Zagharit, the, described, 154
Zaghawah, 16
Zakkaro, 61 n. 5
Zarzis, promontory occupied by Lotophagi,
52 n. 14
Zaueces, placed by Herodotus, 53 ; women
of, as drivers of chariots, 149
Zawilah, 'Okbah Ibn Nafi sent toward,
240
Zayr, mythical ancestor of the Luatah
Berbers, 69
Zellah, 14, 30
Zenaga, rock-glyph at Col de, 196
Zenarah, 69
Zenatah, 70
Zenobia, generals of, allied with Blemmyes,
236
Zeus, Amon, legend of, 190 ; Z. Apomyius,
186; as weather- and sky-god, 201 ;
Theban, 190
Zeytun, at eastern end of Siwah Oasis, 1 o
Zigama, 234
Zonaras, J., cited, 106, 179 h. 8, 180, 234
n. 8, 236 n. 9
Zosimus, cited, 236
Zuchis Promontorium, 52 n. 14, 92
Zygenses, placed by Scylax, 54
Zygantes, placed by Ptolemy, 62
Zygis, 61, 62
Zygris, 61 n. 3, 93
Zygritae, placed by Ptolemy, 61
THE END
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GREEK AND ROMAN COINS. By G. F. Hill, of the Coins Department of the British
Museum. Illustrated. 9s.
THE ROMAN FESTIVALS OF THE PERIOD OF THE REPUBLIC. By W.
Warde Fowler, M.A. 6s.
A HANDBOOK OF GREEK CONSTITUTIONAL HISTORY. By A. H. J.
Greenidge, M.A. With Map. 5s.
THE DESTRUCTION OF ANCIENT ROME. A Sketch of the History of the
Monuments. By Prof. RoDOLFO LANCIANI. Illustrated. 6s.
ROMAN PUBLIC LIFE. By A. H. J. Greenidge, M.A. ios. 6d.
CHRISTIAN ART AND ARCHEOLOGY. A Handbook to the Monuments of the
Early Church. By W. Lowrie, M.A. Illustrated. ios. 6d.
GRAMMAR OF GREEK ART. By Prof. Percy Gardner, Litt.D. Illustrated. 7s. 6d.
LIFE IN ANCIENT ATHENS. The Social and Public Life of a Classical Athenian
from Day to Day. By Prof. T. G. Tucker, Litt.D. Illustrated. 5s.
THE MONUMENTS OF CHRISTIAN ROME. From Constantine to the Renaissance.
By Prof. Arthur L. Frothingham, Ph.D. Illustrated. 10s. 6d.
GREEK ARCHITECTURE. By Prof. Allan Marquand. Illustrated, ios. net.
GREEK ATHLETIC SPORTS AND FESTIVALS. By E. Norman Gardiner, M.A.
Illustrated. ios. 6d.
ATHENS AND ITS MONUMENTS. By Prof. Charles H. Weller, of the University
of Iowa. Illustrated. [In the Press.
MACMILLAN AND CO., Ltd., LONDON.
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